


The Care and Keeping of Anakin Skywalker

by sonderwalker



Series: Writing Prompts [8]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Drabble, Drabble Collection, Fluff, Gen, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mild Language, Prompt Fic, Sickfic, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Whump, because it's me so of course there is whump and fluff, mild romance, most of these are platonic - Freeform, please read the table of contents, romantic and platonic one shots are labeled, tagging as we go, these stories take place anywhere from between TPM and ROTS, wholesome content
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:47:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 27
Words: 27,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27429682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sonderwalker/pseuds/sonderwalker
Summary: A collection of various prompts from discord and tumblr. They were just so good, I couldn't say no, and this was the result.Lots of hurt/comfort, fluff and of course happiness to go around. No sad endings here!The first chapter will be a table of contents.
Relationships: Anakin Skywalker & Ahsoka Tano, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Anakin Skywalker, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Mace Windu, Obi-Wan Kenobi/Anakin Skywalker, Plo Koon & Ahsoka Tano, Plo Koon & Anakin Skywalker, but it's super mild and a lot of these drabbles can be read either platonically or romantically
Series: Writing Prompts [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1812892
Comments: 98
Kudos: 241





	1. table of contents

**Author's Note:**

> in case you were wondering why I haven't updated any of my large WIPs, it's because of this, my life being a mess, and whumptober.   
> but I should update something soon... hopefully...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> these prompts are copy and pasted from discord and tumblr so please excuse typos!

chapter 1 **(romantic)** : prompt: Anakin idly playing with his hands or Obi-Wan's because he's distracted and his hands are cold

chapter 2, **(platonic)** this prompt is from Aricii!:   
Windu: Getting started on a skywalker lecture™️  
anakin: sneezes  
Windu: completely looses his point  
followed by: Windu: Skywalker you need to pay attention ....  
anakin: sneezes  
Windu: Are you sick? Get to the halls of healing this can wait  
this is from a huge list of prompts that have to do with Anakin growing up in a more supportive environment. please don't interpret these as hating on the Jedi, that is not what this is.

chapter 3 **(platonic)** : Anakin humming or singing under his breath while cooking in the kitchen

chapter 4, you guys really said Anakin and Mace friendship rights holy cow **(platonic)** : Anakin being sick and someone is knocking on the door to their quarters. He opens it but starts sneezing and when he’s done he dosen’t even get the chance to speak because mace is like “what are you doing out of bed”   
And Anakin is like “you knocked on the door?”

chapter 5 **(platonic)** : more padawan Anakin!: Obi-Wan is on a mission and Anakin gets really sick. not so sick that he needs to be at the healers but enough that someone needs to keep an eye on him. So different masters take shifts and they're always reluctant to leave when the next one shows up because he's kinda adorable and pathetic like this and they love him.

follow up to chapter 5! chapter 6 **(platonic)** : Plo looking after Anakin while Obi-Wan is gone and this is how Anakin actually meets Ahsoka for the first time because she visits Plo a lot.

follow up for chapter 6 **(platonic)**! requested by Aricii! chapter 7: Obi-wan keeping anakin close while on coruscant because from experience any jedi master rn is viable to just adopt anakin on the spot if they see him alone

chapter 8 **(platonic)** : if Anakin's sneeze is cute, his cough makes your heart hurt because it always sounds like it's coming out of his lungs from all the times he's had pnumonia or bronchitis  
Anakin sneezes and the jedi are like "aww baby"   
Anakin coughs and the jedi are like !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

chapter 9 **(platonic)** : I feel like, Anakin doesn't get sick often anymore because it used to happen so often he knows how to mitigate it but when he does it's like he's been hit with a train. He's down for the count  
the first time it happens the 501st panics  
Ahsoka panics  
the 212th gets a bunch of priority coms that are just everyone begging for Obi-Wan to call them ASAP  
meanwhile Kix is like "guys calm down it's just a bad cold he's fine"  
Ahsoka: HE SOUNDS LIKE DEATH HOW IS THIS FINE

this prompt is from Aricii! chapter 10 **(platonic)** : Hearing anakin sneeze is like order 66  
anyone who hears it switches to creche master mode  
slightly cracky idea but:   
Palpatine is the only person who just kinda ignores anakins sneese or activly teases him and like any jedi to have witnessed this is just immediately: sus

chapter 11! **(platonic)** this prompt is a combination of things from myself, Aricii, and Is0lde: 'I’m still not over this whole prompt of everyone loving and doting on Anakin because he’s the youngest of the group'  
@anemoia   
Let me tell you as someone who took care of first graders if you are tiny and fall asleep on an adult you get the human equivalent of the get out of jail card  
\-------------------------------------------  
omg what if  
what if Anakin figures that out  
he's probably tiny for a really long time  
\------------------------------------------------------  
Anakin falling asleep on obi wan so he doesn’t have to do things  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------  
his body needs to catch up and the healers actually need to do a lot of work to make sure he catches up with his age group

chapter 12, **(platonic)** this prompt is from Is0lde, and is a follow up to chapter 11: Plo: you can finish to your homework tomorrow morning, Anakin  
Anakin: but I'm almost *yawn * done...  
Plo, trying not to MELT: then it will be easy to finish after breakfast. lets get you ready for bed

chapter 13 **(romantic):** post deception AU fic where things are sad, then soft. In an AU where things go down differently, Mace is a good friend, Anakin and Ahsoka are too young to have all of this happen to them, and Anakin has to deal with the fallout of his body being able to only handle so much after Dooku tortured him the last time. Obi-Wan deals with all of this and the emotional repercussions of his relationship with Anakin.

chapter 14 **(romantic)** , a request from Tomicaleto: blue shadow virus with obikin?

chapter 15, **(platonic)** a series of prompts that were basically a list of things Anakin does combined with a prompt about Anakin being the youngest in the group.

chapter 16 **(platonic)** : tiny Anakin falling asleep with either Plo or Mace? from Aricci!

chapter 17 **(platonic)** : tiny obi-wan (who had been de-aged) saying hello there and Anakin bursting into tears, from Aricci!

chapter 18 **(platonic)** : padawan Anakin rubbing his eyes when he's tired or about to cry + greeting the droids in the temple, from Isolde!

chapter 19: padawan Anakin gets really sick after getting his lightsaber crystal from Ilum + a sweet moment ten years later.

chapter 20 **(romantic)** : prompt: none of the masters want anakin to take missions on kamino because they remember what he was like as a kid, and even though he's older now, he's still the youngest of the group.   
it's cold, raining, and neither obi-wan or shaak ti are surprised when anakin ends up getting sick, although shaak is annoyed that they even seriously considered having anakin here in the first place.  
anakin is trying to appear as though he isn't about to collapse at any given moment.   
i'm paraphrasing what was said here, this was requested by Isolde!

chapter 21 **(platonic)** :Prompt: Padawan Anakin falls asleep while waiting for Obi-Wan to come back from a council meeting and obi-wan gently cups his cheek to wake up him- followed by years later when Anakin is hurt and sleeping, obi-wan gently cups his cheek again to wake him up

chapter 22 **(platonic)** : prompt 'if you're admitting to not feeling well, then something must be wrong.' with padawan Anakin and Obi-Wan

chapter 23 **(romantic)** prompt: is from a sleep deprived sentence starter prompt, but I don't remember which one anymore

chapter 24 **(romantic)** prompt from Ari: another wholesome sickfic taking place during the clone wars

chapter 25 **(romantic/platonic- up to the reader)** prompt from Ari: a small Anakin curls up against Obi-Wan on the cruiser as they head for Coruscant after leaving Tatooine. Qui-Gon takes a picture, that's unearthed years later and creates a small scandal. But while many things have changed over the past decade, other things haven't.

chapter 26 **(platonic)** \- a small padawan anankin falls asleep while obi-wan tries to read him something about politics


	2. chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place during TCW

Anakin pulled his hands inside the sleeves of his robes as he watched the snowflakes fall. Coruscant had recently begun its winter cycle, and even though the temple was warm to most, it was still drafty. Which meant that it was could to Anakin. He looked at the chronometer on the wall- Obi-Wan should be returning from his council meeting at any moment, and Ahsoka had said that she would be out late studying with Barris. It was strange- having the apartment to himself and now be completely swamped with work, but it was a nice change.   
Anakin heard the door open, and turned away from the window of their common room.   
"How was your meeting?" Anakin asked as Obi-Wan tossed his cloak onto the arm of the couch. Anakin rolled his eyes- he knew that come tomorrow morning, Obi-Wan would be tearing the whole place up in search of it

"It was fine." Obi-Wan said as he walked towards him and sat on the couch, running a hand through his hair. Anakin sat down next to him, pulling his hands out of his sleeves and resting them on his legs.

"You seem stressed." Anakin noted as he reached out to grab Obi-Wan's hand. Obi-Wan shrugged.

"The chancellor has gotten approval from the senate to gain even more emergency powers." Obi-Wan replied, his eyes closed, but a small smile was growing on his face. Anakin turned back towards the window, watching the speeders passed as he played with Obi-Wan's hands in his own.

"Your hands are cold, dear one." Obi-Wan said after a moment of silence.

"It's winter." Anakin replied while turning to face him. Obi-Wan opened his eyes and looked at Anakin.

"That may be true, but we are inside, and you are wearing force knows how many layers." Obi-Wan responded, taking Anakin's hand in his own. Anakin felt his face heat up, and turned back to face Obi-Wan again.

"Well, your hands are warm." He said with a small smile.

"That, they are." Obi-Wan responded softly, smiling back.


	3. chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one takes place during TCW

"Skywalker, that was reckless, and you know it." Mace said, frowning at the Jedi in front of him. Anakin looked away for a moment, and then back at him, brushing wet locks of hair out of his face.

"But it worked?" He said, his voice cracking. Mace sighed. 

"It may have worked this time, but the separatists are starting to catch on to your tactics." Mace warned. "If they were to get the upper hand during this campaign, it could be disastrous for the republic's control over the system. Tensions are already high as is and-" Mace stopped talking when he noticed that Anakin's facial expression had changed.

"Skywalker, are you listening to me?" Mace asked while crossing his arms over his chest. "We're talking about the-" But he stopped talking as Anakin turned to sneeze into the crook of his elbow several times. Mace blinked. Despite the outwardly appearance of Anakin- who was now far more grown than he had been when Mace first met him, there were times that he forgot that despite the war and the responsibilities on his shoulders, Anakin had only turned twenty a few standard months ago.  
Most Jedi were still padawans at his age, and were treated as such. 

"Sorry Master." Anakin said while sniffling. "I know it was reckless, but-" Mace raised his hand and Anakin stopped speaking.

"We can speak about this later after you've gotten some rest." Mace said.

"I'm not that tired." Anakin replied, his voice cracking. The Jedi master raised an eyebrow at Anakin's response. Anakin opened his mouth again to say something, but was cut off again by another sneezing fit.

"Anakin." Mace said after he was done. Anakin grimaced- he knew that tone. There was no way he was going to argue his way out of this one.

"Yes master." Anakin said while sighing.


	4. chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place during TCW

Ahsoka sat at the small table in their kitchen, scrolling through her datapad while her master moved about behind her. An add for a new blouse caught her eye, and tapped on it, trying to look at the different sizes and colors it came it. As she read through the different options, she noticed that there was a new sound in the kitchen.   
And it was coming specifically from Anakin.

Ahsoka lowered her datapad, carefully listening to her master. She smiled, as she realized that he was in fact, humming under his breath as he mixed something in a bowl. She set the datapad down on the counter, and strained her neck to see what he was mixing. Her grin grew when she realized that the contents in the bowl looked a lot like the cookie dough that he always makes when he's making cookies for the younglings.

"Whatcha doing, master?" She asked as he set the bowl down on the counter.

"Making cookies." He replied, grabbing a small spoon out of a drawer.

"So, I'm guessing that you have a class of younglings that you're going to be teacher later?" She asked.

"Make sure you save some cookies for Master Obi-Wan." Anakin rolled his eyes.

"What Obi-Wan doesn't know won't hurt him, Snips." Anakin responded, taking a small amount of cookie dough out of the bowl with the spoon and eating it.

"I thought humans couldn't eat raw eggs."

Anakin shrugged. "It depends." He said as he took another bite of cookie dough, and continuing to him. Ahsoka rolled her eyes and picked her datapad back up.

"Well, if you're up all night throwing up because of this, I'll be there to say 'I told you so.'"

"Thanks." Anakin said while rolling his eyes and grabbing a baking sheet.


	5. chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> takes place between TPM and AOTC

Anakin groaned and rolled over. Someone had been knocking on their door for several minutes, and he hoped that by continuing to lay in bed and feeling like he just got hit by a speeder would eventually cause them to leave.

Whoever they were, they were persistent. Anakin sighed and sat up, the many blankets that he was under pooling at his waist. He groaned again as the pressure in his face shifted, and pinched the bridge of his nose. Without the layers that he had earlier, Anakin shivered as a chill ran up his spine. He tightly crossed his arms over his chest, straining his ears to try and listen to see if the person knocking had actually given up and left.

They knocked again, and Anakin sighed, swinging his legs out from underneath the blankets and wincing as his bare feet touched the cold floor. The knocking continued as Anakin made his way down the hall and towards the door. He waived the door open, but before he even registered who was standing in front of him, he turned to the side to sneeze into his elbow several times. Sniffling, he turned back to face the door way.

"What are you doing out of bed, Skywalker?" Mace asked, his face as stoic as ever. 

"You were knocking on the door." Anakin rasped, wincing at how bad he sounded. Mace frowned.

"You sound horrible." 

"Thanks." 

"Are you here by yourself?" He asked. "Where is Obi-Wan?" Anakin shrugged, before turning away to cough. He turned back, and saw that Mace's expression had softened. Anakin nodded. Mace sighed. 

"Wait here, I will be right back." He said, before turning to walk away. A moment later, he was back, holding a small metal box in his hand as he walked past Anakin and into the kitchen of the apartment that Anakin shared with Obi-Wan. 

"What's that?" Anakin asked as he looked at the box. 

"It's tea. For your throat" Mace replied, turning the kettle on.

"We have tea here. I'm old enough to use the kettle on my own." Anakin replied sitting down at the small kitchen table.

"Where does Obi-Wan keep the mugs?" Mace asked. 

"Top left cabinet." Anakin said while resting his head on the table. His face was hot, and the table was cool, offering some relief. He closed his eyes and sighed, and then jumped when he heard a thud. 

"Here." Mace said, as Anakin sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Take this and get back in bed." Anakin grabbed the mug with both hands, another chill running up his spine. 

"Yes master." Anakin said as he stood back up. 

"And tell Obi-Wan that I stopped by, alright?" He said, his voice softer. Anakin nodded, before turning to head back towards his room. 

The tea was nice, but Anakin was tired after walking around. He set the mug on his nightstand after only taking a few sips before crawling back under all of the blankets on his bed and closing his eyes.


	6. chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so many prompts... so little time...   
> but i am working my way through them!   
> this one takes place between TPM and AOTC

Obi-Wan sighed and looked around at the members of the Jedi council. 

"Masters, are you sure this is a good idea?" 

"Concerned you are, about the mission requirements?" Yoda asked, pointing a finger at Obi-Wan. 

"No, well, not exactly." He replied, rubbing the back of his neck as his face heated up. He sighed again, dropping his hand to his side. 

"It's Anakin. He's been unwell for the past few days, and this mission is going to take at least a week." 

"Do not worry about Padawan Skywalker." Plo said. "We will make sure that he is taken care of." Obi-Wan wanted to insist that someone else take the mission. He wanted to stay with Anakin, who had barley been his apprentice for two years. He felt like he should stay with Anakin. He swore to train and protect him. But he knew that Master Plo would do just as well of a job- if not better than he would at watching a sick twelve year old.

"Yes, master. Thank you master." Obi-Wan said, bowing his head. Plo Koon waived his hand.

"It is of no concern. Skywalker is one of us- and he is a child as well. He will be well cared for." 

"Thank you again, masters." Obi-Wan said before exiting. 

* * *

"I am impressed." Mace said as he walked down the hall towards Obi-Wan and Anakin's quarters. "Young Skywalker is much more well behaved than his master was at his age." 

  
"I agree." Plo said. "At first I was worried that Padawan Skywalker would be too... abrasive due to his upbringing. It is a pleasant surprise to see that he is such a wonderful child, despite everything." Mace nodded, and waived the door open entering the quiet common room.

"I shall see you for our eveing sparring session, Master Windu." Plo said while entering the room. Qui-Gon's plants hung from the ceiling in the common room, but he was more concerned by the muffled coughing that was coming from down the hall.

"Padawan?" Plo asked softly as he waived the door open to Anakin's room. He watched as the lump on the bed shifted, Anakin's head poking out from underneath the blankets. 

"Hello Master Plo." Anakin whispered, squinting up at the Jedi master in front of him. 

"That cough does not sound good, young one. Perhaps I should take you to see a healer."   
Anakin shrugged. "It's not that bad. I've been sicker before." He quickly ducked back under the cover again, coughing more violently then he had earlier. Plo reached out to touch the boy, but hesitated, his hand hovering above him. 

"This is not something that should be taken lightly." Plo said as Anakin caught his breath. 

"I know." Anakin mumbled. 

"Then you must understand why I am insisting that you see a healer."

"I do." Anakin said and then yawned. "But can we go later?" He asked, looking up at Plo. "I'm tired." Plo had no idea how Obi-Wan was able to say no to this child when he looked at him like that.   
"We can go later." He said. "Would you like anything to drink?" But Anakin shook his head again. 

"Wanna sleep." He whispered, closing his eyes again. 

"I shall be back to check on you in a few hours, young one." Plo said as he turned to leave. He heard Anakin hum in agreement. Waiving his hand, he turned the lights out in the bedroom, and exited through the doorway.


	7. chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i keep saying that 'this is the fluffiest thing i have ever written' and then turn around and outdo myself like 48 hours later.   
> enjoy!

"Master!" Ahsoka called out, running up to grab Plo's hand. 

"Little 'Soka!" He exclaimed, picking her up in the air and spinning her around. 

"How are you?" He asked, setting her back down.

"I'm good! How are you?" She asked, and Plo's heart swelled with pride at listening to Ahsoka learn to engage in polite conversation.

"I am well, thank you for asking." He said as he continued to walk, grabbing Ahsoka's small hand with her own.

"Where are we going?" She asked as they walked towards a different part of the temple lodging section. 

"We, are going to visit Padawan Skywalker." Plo replied. "His master has left for a mission, and he has asked for us to check in on him." 

"Do you think he'll want to play with me?" Ahsoka asked, her eyes bright. 

"Padawan Skywalker has recently been ill, so you must behave while we are there to see him." Ahsoka's face fell. 

"But, perhaps he will want to play with you once he's feeling better." He suggested, smiling under his mask as Ahsoka's face brightened back up. Plo stopped walking, and Ahsoka almost ran into his legs. She looked back up at him, and nodded as he placed a finger over his mask. 

"Shhhhhhhh." She said, placing a finger over her own mouth as well. Plo nodded, and then waived the door open. Ahsoka eagerly looked around, noticing the plants in the windows, and the fact that even though people lived here, it felt too quiet. She looked back up at Plo, who was now leading her down the hall, towards a bedroom. Plo raised his hand, and waived the door open. 

"It is good to see that you are feeling well enough to be sitting up in bed." Plo said as he walked into the room. Anakin sniffled, looking up at him from his datapad , and then down again at Ahsoka, and then back at Plo.

"Introduce yourself, Ahsoka." He said, pushing her forward. 

"I'm Ahsoka Tano, and I'm here with Master Plo!" She said, puffing her chest out. "He said that we could be friends, but that you'd be too sick to play today."

Anakin grinned. He didn't have a lot of experience with the younglings in the temple, but Ahsoka seemed like she was a very funny girl. He looked back at Ahsoka, but before he could introduce himself to her, he turned away to sneeze several times. 

"Why do you sound like a loth cat?" Ahsoka asked when he had finished. 

"Hey!" Anakin exclaimed, his voice cracking. She giggled, grabbing her lekku and looking back up at Plo. 

"Little 'Soka." Plo began, his voice stern. 

"Sorry." She mumbled, looking down. She looked back up at Anakin after a moment. 

"Can we still be friends?" She asked. 

"Uh... sure." Anakin said and sniffled. 

"Really?" She exclaimed loudly. Anakin winced at the sudden increase of volume, and Plo placed a calming hand on her shoulder. 

"Perhaps we should leave Padawan Skywalker to rest." He suggested. "You can play with him when he is feeling better." But Ahsoka shook her head and stomped her foot on the ground. 

"Friends don't leave other friends behind." She said, setting her jaw and jumped on Anakin's bed. He scooted away from her, raising his hands apprehensively. 

"Um, I'm not sure if this is the best idea." He said, looking between her and Plo. "I don't wanna get you sick." 

"You probably cannot pass on whatever virus you have to her." Plo said nonchalantly. "However that does not mean that we should not exercise caution." 

"Master Plo." Ahsoka said. "Have you read him a story?" She asked. "I love it when masters read me stories!" 

"Ahsoka." Plo said and sighed. Anakin turned away to sneeze again. 

"Are humans supposed to sound like loth cats?" She asked, looking back at Anakin. He looked up and narrowed his eyes at her, but all she did was giggle when he scrunched up his nose and turned to sneeze again. 

"Maybe you would feel better if Master Plo read you a story!" she suggested after Anakin was done. 

"Master pleaseeeeeeeeee." She said, turning back to face Plo, who was now looking at Anakin.

Anakin shrugged. "I don't really mind." 

"Yes!" Ahsoka exclaimed, scooting next to Anakin so that Plo could sit on his bed as well. Anakin passed him his datapad, and leaned back into the pillows. He didn't want to say anything out loud, but he found Ahsoka's weight on his side comforting. He sighed, and then turned to cough. 

"Are you okay?" Ahsoka asked urgently. 

"Yeah." Anakin rasped. He cleared his throat. "I'm fine." He heard Plo sigh, and was waiting for another lecture on how he shouldn't be so careless with his health. Instead, he began telling them a story about a princess that lived in a galaxy that was far far away.   
And when he was done with the story, he looked back up from the datapad to see that they had both fallen asleep, Ahsoka's face pressed against Anakin's shoulder as they breathed deeply.   
He made sure to send Obi-Wan holos


	8. chapter 7

"It is glad to see that you are doing better, Padawan Skywalker." Plo said as he entered the library, walking up towards Anakin who was sitting on a nearby bench.

"Thank you." Anakin said, looking towards him. 

"Tell me, what brings you in here today?" Plo asked as he sat down next to Anakin. 

He shrugged. "Master Kenobi said he wanted to look at something for a council assignment, and asked me to come with him." 

"Is that so?" Plo asked, tilting his head slightly. Anakin nodded, and turned to look down a row of bookshelves. 

"He went to go look at something in a restricted section and told me to wait here for him." Anakin said, leaning over further to see if he could spot his own master walking towards them.   
"Well, how about we look at some other holocrons while we wait for him?" Plo asked. "Your master has mentioned that you are quite the avid reader." Anakin turned back to face him, his eyes bright.

"Really?!" But then Plo watched as his shoulders slumped slightly and the boy in front of him recomposed himself before speaking again.

"I'd like that." Anakin said softer, but still smiling. Plo placed a hand on his shoulder as he stood up.

"Well then it is settled. Come, Anakin." Plo said, walking away. Anakin quickly got up and followed after him, eager to see what the Jedi master was going to show him.

* * *

"Anakin?" Obi-Wan called out as he walked down the row of bookshelves. 

"Anakin?" He called again, more urgently as he now saw that his apprentice was no longer where he had left him. 

"Oh, not again." He muttered. He quickly walked towards the bench, looking around for any signs of where Anakin could have wandered off to. Obi-Wan knew that he shouldn't be so worried- Anakin was a bright an independent child, and had probably seen a holocron that he was interested in reading and walked off. But even still, he couldn't help to worry slightly. Anakin was supposed to be his responsibility.   
Obi-Wan continued looking around again, but then suddenly paused when he heard a familiar sound. He turned in the other direction, towards another row of bookshelves, following the sound of Anakin's laughter- softer than usual because of his location.

"Anakin what- Master Plo!" Obi-Wan exclaimed. 

"Knight Kenobi." Plo said while nodding. Anakin had turned away from the shelf and was now facing him. 

"I hope your research has been going well. Young Skywalker was just telling me about your assignment." He said. Anakin looked between the two of them.

"Master, you're the one who gave me this assignment." Obi-Wan deadpanned.


	9. chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more padawan anakin!

When Obi-Wan returned from his training session with Luminara, he expected to come home to an empty apartment. He was expecting that Anakin would be out studying for a few more hours, or hopefully making new friends. Instead, he walked in and saw his padawan asleep on the small couch in their common room, his head squished into the armrest. 

"Anakin." He whispered, shaking his shoulder gently. He frowned at the head coming off of his body, hoping that he wasn't coming down with something again. That was something that he had at first overlooked- how a child from a desert would adapt to a cool climate like Coruscant. And the answer to that was not very well at first.   
Anakin shifted and opened his eyes, blinking slowly and reaching up to rub them, his hand partially hidden by his sleeve. 

"Are you feeling alright?" Obi-Wan asked softly. "You feel warm." He placed a hand on Anakin's forehead and sighed. He felt too warm. Again.   
Anakin looked up at him and shrugged. He turned his head away from Obi-Wan and began to cough. Obi-Wan winced in sympathy, rubbing his back gently. When he was done, Obi-Wan heard Anakin sigh and watched his body relax again. 

"That does not sound good, padawan." Obi-Wan remarked. Anakin turned back to face him, and now that Obi-Wan could get a better look at his face, he could see the familiar signs of a fever. The flushed face, the glazed over eyes. Anakin turned away to cough and Obi-Wan winced again. They sounded like they hurt and a part of him wanted to take Anakin to the halls of healing right then and there and get him looked over. But instead, he stayed by Anakin's side, rubbing his back until the fit was over and Anakin had turned to face him again. 

"Perhaps you would feel better after having a cup of tea and changing into something more comfortable?" Obi-Wan suggested. Anakin sat up slowly, pushing off couch with both hands. He swung his legs over the edge of the couch, but didn't get up yet.

Obi-Wan kept a steadying hand on his shoulder, even as Anakin stood up. He let go as Anakin walked towards his room, wincing again at the sound of the coughs echoing from down the hall. A few moments later, Obi-Wan found himself sitting on the edge of Anakin's bed, silently passing him a cup. The late afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows, but Obi-Wan knew that if Anakin was feeling tired enough to want to go to bed before the sun set, then he must be feeling poorly.   
More coughing shook him out of his thoughts. He moved to grab the cup of tea and started rubbing his back again.

"Tomorrow, we are seeing a healer about that cough of yours. I am worried that it could turn into something more serious." Anakin frowned at him, but the effect that his padawan was going for didn't really work when he was currently shaking slightly under the covers. Obi-Wan pulled them further up his chest. 

"Remember the last time you had gotten pneumonia?" Obi-Wan asked. "You were so sick that you could hardly get out of bed for a week. I would prefer if we didn't repeat that."   
Anakin huffed, but knew that he was beaten. 

"Can I have the tea again?" He rasped. Obi-Wan winced at the sound of his voice, passing him the cup again. They sat in silence as Anakin continued to drink more of it. 

"Do you feel like going back to sleep?" Obi-Wan asked as he took the now empty cup from Anakin's hand. He shook his head, instead leaning over to grab his datapad from his nightstand. 

"Alright, but I better not hear the sound of you messing with yet another droid." Obi-Wan warned.

Anakin nodded.

"And you will let me know right away if you need anything, or if you begin to feel worse."

Anakin nodded. 

"Do you want me to stay with you?" Obi-Wan asked suddenly. 

Anakin nodded again. 

And even though he had told Obi-Wan that he wasn't tired, he had fallen back asleep within the hour.


	10. chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> takes place during TCW!

"Master, are humans _supposed_ to make that sound? " Ahsoka asked as Anakin was catching his breath after another coughing fit. He winced and swallowed. 

"No?" He rasped, and then cleared his throat. "It's not a big deal, Snips." Ahsoka crossed her arms over her chest and frowned. 

"Each time you cough it sounds like I'm listening to a shitty speeder engine start up." 

"Ahsoka, language." Anakin reprimanded. They both rolled their eyes. 

"It's true!" She exclaimed. "There's no way this is normal, you gotta go see Kix, master." Ahsoka said, following Anakin as he turned around the corner and walked down another hall of the Resolute

"Rex!" Ahsoka called out, spotting the captain from down the hall. He stopped walking and turned to face them. 

"General, Commander." He said as he approached. Ahsoka bounced on the balls of her feet and Anakin knew that look in her eyes.   
She was planning something. But he couldn't focus on that right now. Right now he was focused on appearing as normal as possible to Rex. Slow breaths, in and out.   
He could do this.   
That was until Ahsoka jabbed him in his stomach with her elbow while trying to make a corny joke and suddenly Anakin found himself doubled over, as harsh coughs were torn from his throat.

"General!" Rex exclaimed. "We gotta get you to the medbay, now!" 

"That's right Skyguy, let's go!" Ahsoka said as she grabbed his arm and pulled him down the hall, Rex on his other side with his other arm. He wanted to try and squirm out of their grip, but he couldn't. Or, at least he couldn't without making even more of a scene. So he let them lead him to the medical bay. 

"Kix!" Rex called, waiving him over. Anakin at this point had given up on trying to keep up a front of being normal, and was now more focused on massaging his temples, trying to stop the throbbing pain behind his eyes.  
  
"What seems to be the problem?" Kix asked as he walked over. 

"Master Skywalker sounds like a crappy speeder engine each time he coughs." Ahsoka said, narrowing her eyes at him. Anakin looked up at her and rolled his eyes again.

"It's nothing serious, Kix." Anakin replied. 

"General, with all due respect, that cough does not sound good." Rex said. He looked up at Kix, who was now pointing a thermometer at Anakin's forehead. 

"Hmmmm, it's higher than normal, but not too high." Kix said as he read the screen. He looked back up at them. 

"Aside from the cough and the low grade fever, any other symptoms?" He asked. Anakin opened his mouth to respond and reassure Kix, but instead he just ended up sneezing several times into the crook of his elbow. 

"You probably just have a bad cold, general." Kix said as Anakin sniffled and turned to face him again. 

"There's nothing to worry about, he'll be fine in a few days." He said, turning to face Ahsoka. 

"But in the meantime, you should get as much rest as possible, sir." Kix continued, turning back to face Anakin who nodded. 

"Does this mean I get to skip my defense stance practice today?" Ahsoka asked hopefully, 

Anakin cleared his throat "Obi-Wan is on his way to the training room right now Snips. Better get going." He said with a smile. She groaned. 

"But Master Kenobi is so hard to beat in practice!" Ahsoka complained. Anakin shrugged. 

"It builds character." , and began to laugh at Ahsoka's face. But after a moment they turned into the same painful coughs from earlier.

"General, I must insist that you head back to your quarters." Kix said firmly. "We don't want you to get any worse." Anakin slid off of the examination bench nodded again, not trusting his voice to speak after that last fit. Despite knowing that Obi-Wan was waiting for her, Ahsoka followed him to his quarters. 

"Do you want me to get you sick so that you don't have to go train?" Anakin whispered as he waived the door to his quarters open. 

"No." Ahsoka mumbled. "I'm just worried." 

"I'll be fine, it's just a bad cold. Besides, you probably can't get it anyway." 

"Does this mean that you'll still play sabacc with me later?" She asked, her eyes lighting up. Anakin shrugged. He wanted to tell her yes, but he was also tired from spending the majority of the day hiding his illness. 

"If I feel up to it." He said while shrugging. But that seemed to be a good enough answer for her. 

"I'll come back later with Master Kenobi!" She said as she turned to leave. "He'll probably want to make sure that you didn't hack up a lung while you slept." Anakin rolled his eyes again and huffed. 

"Whatever. I'll see you in a few hours." He said, closing the door after that. Anakin quickly collapsed on his bed, kicking his boots off and not caring that he was still in his day clothes as his eyes slid shut. And even though he slept through sabacc with Ahsoka, it was nice to have the three of them alone later on when Obi-Wan came to check in on him as well.


	11. chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> more. padawan. anakin.

"The chancellor has requested the presence of your padawan." Mace said as they walked down a hallway together. The warm sunlight of Coruscant streamed through the windows, reflecting off of the temple walls and creating glowing spots on the floor. The sound of younglings laughing echoed down the hallway.   
In short, all was peaceful. 

Obi-Wan's eyes widened slightly in shock. "I am honored, master, truly. But why would such an esteemed politician be interested in a twelve year old boy?" 

Mace frowned. "His intentions are unclear- but I sense no ill will from the chancellor. Your padawan for the most part is well-mannered, even though he seems to think that dismantling all of the cleaning droids on your floor is a fun activity." 

Obi-Wan sighed. "Well, Anakin's curiosity sometimes gets the better of him. When has the chancellor requested to meet with him?" 

"This afternoon." 

"I shall go with him." Obi-Wan replied firmly. He expected some kind of rebuke, some kind of warning that he should let Anakin grow and experience things on his own. But Obi-Wan knew that he had more than his fair share while growing up on Tatooine. Instead however, Mace just nodded. 

"I think that is wise." He said. "Despite the high honor, Padawan Skywalker is still a child- he has only recently turned 12 standard years old. He will need an adult to guide him." 

"I will." Obi-Wan said firmly. "I promised."

Later that afternoon, Obi-Wan stood outside the office of the chancellor, his padawan at his side, eagerly looking around at all of the expensive artwork. While Obi-Wan thought it was nice, he saw no need to keep so many material possessions. As they progressed through the halls, it seemed as though Anakin was also confused by the sheer amount of things that one could have. 

"What do you think he does with all of this stuff, master?" Anakin asked, staring at an elaborate painting. 

"It is for show." Obi-Wan replied with a shrug. "Politicians like to show off their wealth." Anakin frowned at that, turning around to face Obi-Wan. 

"Why don't they use it to help people?" He asked. "It's useless if it's just sitting here and getting all dusty." He wrinkled his nose, looking back at an expensive vase that had a fine layer of dust on it.

Obi-Wan shrugged, but was pleased to see that Anakin was not so eager to take the chancellor- or any politician at face value. "You would have to ask the chancellor."   
Just then, a door opened and the chancellor stepped forward, his dark and heavy robes swirling around him. The light from the window behind him casted his face in a shadow. Obi-Wan knew that he was just a gentle old man. But he could not shake the sinister feeling that something was amiss. The sound of Anakin sneezing startled him out of his thoughts. He turned to face his padawan, and then back at the chancellor.   
Whose facial expression did not change.   
Obi-Wan frowned. Not even Master Yoda kept a straight face when that happened. He had to make sure that Anakin always stayed close to him because other knights and masters would always insist that they just wanted to have a quick conversation with Anakin because he is so well mannered! or he excels at all of his studies! or the one that Anakin hated the most: he sounds like a loth cat when he does that!  
But now, the chancellor's face was still as neutral as ever.He took one more look at Anakin, who was now standing straight and facing the chancellor. He could tell that he was embarrassed, but had masked it under a neutral face of diplomacy. And Obi-Wan was proud. But he was also Anakin's guardian, and in that moment, he decided to go with his gut feeling. 

"My apologies, Chancellor Palpatine." Obi-Wan said while bowing deeply. "It would seem as though my padawan is unwell. Perhaps we should reschedule." He could feel through his bond with Anakin that he wanted to object, but Obi-Wan shot him a look and Anakin set his jaw, knowing that they would discuss this later. 

"How... unfortunate." The chancellor replied slowly, not taking his eyes off of Anakin. Obi-Wan moved slightly, placing himself between the chancellor and his padawan. 

"If you would please excuse us." He said before bowing again, grabbing Anakin's shoulder and quickly leading him out of the room. 

Later, back at the temple, he had to explain why there was no meeting with the chancellor. At first he expected to be lectured on his lack of diplomacy, but once he explained the situation in full, he was surprised to see all of the masters nod their heads in agreement. 

"Where is Padawan Skywalker now?" Plo asked while tilting his head to the side. 

"Probably taking apart yet another cleaning droid." Obi-Wan said while shrugging. "I had him finish his schoolwork early to go to this meeting, and I am sure he has found a way to entertain himself for the rest of the evening."


	12. chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> padawan anakin rights am i right guys

Obi-Wan knew that Anakin was tired. He had followed him around the temple for hours while he spoke to other knights and masters. While he went and did research for his upcoming mission. But Anakin didn't complain, in fact he seemed to be happy about having something to do, and happy that Obi-Wan was there to do it with him.   
But as the day wore on, Obi-Wan knew that Anakin was growing tired. He was no longer bouncing on the balls of his feet when he got excited, and Obi-Wan had to take smaller strides to accommodate Anakin. But still, he never complained that he was tired, and dutifully followed Obi-Wan around.   
However, once they returned to their quarters, Anakin promptly sat down on the small couch after removing his boots and huffed. 

"Tired, padawan?" Obi-Wan asked as he walked into the kitchen to make a cup of tea for himself. 

"No." Anakin replied. Obi-Wan rolled his eyes and smiled.

"Would you like a cup of tea?"

"No." A pause. "Thank you." Obi-Wan's smile grew wider. Despite Anakin being quite the handful at times, he still could not get over how well mannered he was for his age.   
And he wished that Qui-Gon were here to see it. Obi-Wan sighed as he poured the hot water into his cup, watching as the color changed form clear to a light blue. He looked back up and watched as Anakin was now staring out the window, blinking slowly as he rested his head on the armrest of the couch. 

"Are you sure you're not tired?" Obi-Wan asked as he came over and sat down next to him. Anakin sat up, shaking his head as he did so and looked up at Obi-Wan. 

"When do you leave?" He asked, and Obi-Wan sighed, taking a sip of his tea before continuing. 

"In 48 hours. But the mission should be short- I am only aiding with negotiations, and I expect to be back on Coruscant in a few days." But that answer didn't seem to satisfy Anakin, who scooted closer towards Obi-Wan and sighed. 

"Are you gonna have Master Plo watch me again?"

"I thought you liked when Master Plo stopped by?" Obi-Wan asked while frowning. Anakin shrugged.

"I do, but he's not you." Anakin said while frowning. He looked back up at Obi-Wan, who ruffled his hair. 

"Master, stop!" Anakin said while laughing, trying to move away. He ducked forward, underneath Obi-Wan's arm, but Obi-Wan quickly pulled Anakin's head out of the sleeve of his cloak.   
Or, he tried to at least. But Anakin resisted, and instead further squished his face against Obi-Wan's bicep. 

"Anakin, what are you doing?

"Trapping you." Anakin replied, his voice muffled by Obi-Wan's robes. "You can't leave if I don't let you. Obi-Wan huffed and sighed, knowing that Anakin would probably get up in a few minutes to go do something else. 

But when those minutes had passed, and Obi-Wan looked back down, he realized that Anakin had fallen asleep on him.  
And then he realized, that he was indeed, trapped. But he didn't mind.


	13. chapter 12

Plo watched as Anakin sat at the kitchen table, his head nodding as he worked on something on his datapad. He remembered Obi-Wan warning him that Anakin had a tendency to overwork himself, and he knew that was true. The last time he had been asked to watch Anakin was when he was unwell, and even then, Anakin insisted on working on his studies at times where he should have been resting. But now, as he watched Anakin's head nod, and his eyes flutter shut, he knew that it was time to intervene.   
The sun had set hours ago on Coruscant, and Skywalker was still young and growing. While Plo did not know that much about human biology he knew that any growing being required rest. He also knew that Skywalker was different than other humans that he had watched before. He was still small for his age, despite eating what Plo assumed was a normal amount. However, none of the knights, masters, or healers seemed to be worried by this. 

"It would seem as though it is time for you to rest, young one." Plo said as he watched Anakin's head nod again. The boy looked up, rubbing his eyes with a balled up first and yawning. 

"But I'm not done." He whined, looking back down at the glowing tablet. 

"You can finish your homework tomorrow morning, Anakin." Plo replied. 

"I'm almost done." He mumbled before yawning again. Plo sighed- how Obi-Wan dealt with such a headstrong child everyday was beyond him. But, as he spent more and more time with Anakin, Plo realized that he was growing quite fond of him. His curiosity and intuition were refreshing, as was the fact that he was more well-mannered than his master was at the same age. 

"Then it will be easy for you to finish tomorrow morning. Come, let's get you ready for bed." He replied. Anakin sighed, and shut the datapad off before sliding his chair away from the table and taking it with him. 

"What is so pressing that you cannot wait until tomorrow to complete your homework?" Plo asked as he followed Anakin down the hall.

"Obi-Wan is gonna come back tomorrow, and he promised that we would spend the whole afternoon together!" Anakin said, his eyes lighting up as he turned to face Plo. "And I wanna have all of my homework done so that he won't ask me about it." Plo smiled under his mask. Yes, Kenobi was quite lucky to have such a studious padawan. But, Plo worried that Skywalker always seemed to think about others, and never himself. 

"Well, I am sure that your master would much rather have you be well rested and healthy when he returns." Plo replied as he stood in Anakin's doorway. "And not deal with a cranky and tired padawan." 

"'m not cranky." Anakin said while pouting. 

"Not yet, you aren't." Plo responded. "I shall see you in the morning, padawan." 

"Goodnight, master." Anakin said before the door slid shut.


	14. chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> post hardeen AU fic where things are nice and soft in the end.

The first time Anakin had a panic attack since Obi-Wan had come back, he didn’t think much of it. A part of his mind still clung to the image of Obi-Wan, lifeless in Ahsoka’s arms as she looked up at him, tears threatening to spill over. How he felt their bond shatter into a million pieces, and the accompanying loneliness that he felt.

They had been happening more often anyway, ever since he had gotten back from when Dooku had captured him on Naboo.

But the nightmares, the nightmares of hearing the shot echo throughout the nighttime air of Coruscant, the warning in the force, the rushing, hoping, praying that he wasn’t too late. That hadn’t happened since his mother had died.

So now, Anakin found himself sitting up in his bed, covered in a cold sweat and shaking. Heat pounding in his chest. Gasping for air, a hand clutching at his sleeping tunic because he needed it _off._ There was too much weight on his chest, and he couldn’t get enough air, and each time he closed his eyes, he saw Obi-Wan’s body fall from the rooftop and down onto the ground below.

Another gasp for air, his hands curled into fists as he tried to maintain his grip on his bedsheets, his tunic and on reality. He squeezed his eyes shut, willing away those scenes that played out over and over again behind his eyes. He opened them again, gasping for air when he realized that wouldn’t work. He looked over at his nightstand, at the chronometer that was showing him the time. But he couldn’t read it very well through his tears. He blinked again, his eyes moving towards a glass of water that was on the nightstand as well. With a shaking hand, he reached out and grabbed it, taking slow, tentative sips to stop himself from breathing so hard.

It was a new trick he had learned ever since Obi-Wan had gone… on that mission. He sighed, setting the glass back down on the table, doing his best to control his breathing. Just like how Obi-Wan had taught him. He wiped the tears from his eyes, and looked back at the time, sighing when he realized that he had only slept for three hours before being woken up again. But now, even though it was the dead of night, his body shook with adrenaline, and his chest ached with the fear that was slowly fading away. His heartbeat had calmed down, but not enough to where he could relax again. But he knew he needed to. Not for his sake, but for Ahsoka, who needed someone who wasn’t going to leave her. Wasn’t going to betray her trust and stay at her side no matter what. He had to be a good master for her.

And he had been reminded of that too- when Mace had spoken to him after a sparring session, noting that he didn’t look well and that maybe he should consider going on leave. But Anakin shook his head.

Everything was fine. It had to be.

The second time he had a panic attack, it was during the day. Not at night, after a nightmare when he could usually hide it, but during the day. In the kitchen, where he had been trying to make dough. Kneading it, folding it over in his hands, as his mind wandered, never in one place for too long.

He hadn’t been thinking about Obi-Wan though. He couldn’t even remember what he was thinking about. He was currently thinking about the pounding in his chest, the sinking feeling in his stomach, the way his lungs screamed for more air, _more air._ He was dizzy, disoriented, gripping the countertop of the kitchen as he tried to ground himself again. But it wasn’t working. He numbly realized through the fog that he was going to throw up, and quickly ran on shaking limbs to the fresher, locking himself in. He didn’t want Ahsoka to see him like this. Everything had to be fine for her. He sat back on the tile floor, wiping his mouth and sighing. Not bothering to get up, he used the force to flush everything away, and sat there, his head between his knees as he breathed deeply.

That was another trick he had began using more. But it didn’t ease the pain in his chest, or the way his stomach still turned even after he emptied it.

He heard a quiet knock on the door. Anakin sighed and looked up at it, contemplating if he should say anything at all or wait until they left.

He hoped it wasn’t Ahsoka. She should still be in class.

“Anakin?” He heard Obi-Wan’s voice call out from the other side of the door. “Are you alright?”

Inhale. Exhale. “Fine.” He replied, surprised, and pleased at how normal his voice sounded.

“Are you sure? I heard you throwing up in-“Obi-Wan said

“It’s fine.” Anakin said, cutting him off. He brushed a lock of sweaty hair out of his face and pushed himself off of the ground. The dizziness returned, and Anakin leaned forward, gripping the sink.

That was new.

“I’m fine.” He said, looking at his reflection in the mirror.

The third time, it was different.

No longer was he by himself in his quarters. He was standing in the council chambers, listening to a briefing on his next mission. They had just dismissed Ahsoka, and he told her that he would meet her back in their quarters, and then they could go to Dex’s. He had been staring straight ahead at Yoda, turning his head to face whoever was speaking. But Obi-Wan never spoke, and so, Anakin never looked at him.

But the words began to fade out, the holograms in front of him going out of focus. Voices swirled around him, but he didn’t understand anything that was being said. The same sinking feeling was back, a hand over his heart, willing it to calm down in his chest.

It didn’t.

Another hand gripping at his tunic, like as if he could force his lungs to behave.

He couldn’t.

Obi-Wan watched as Anakin took a step back, before leaping up as he crumpled to the floor. But he wasn’t fast enough, and he watched as if it were happing in slow motion. He knees giving out, his arms going limp. His eyes rolling up into the back of his head. He watched as Anakin fell to the floor, his arms reaching out but not fast enough as his head hit the ground. The other masters circled around his body in shock, murmuring to one another in distress. It was Mace who cut through the tension, kneeling next Anakin and checking his pulse. His frown deepened as his fingers stayed on Anakin’s neck, and in one quick movement he gathered Anakin up in his arms and stood. Anakin’s arm dangled, his head lolled and hung from his forearm.

“He needs medical attention, immediately.” He said as he rushed out the door, his cloak billowing out behind him. Obi-Wan closed his mouth- he hadn’t even realized it was open, before rushing out after him and towards the halls of healing.

The tension was thick. Ahsoka sat next to him silently, and she seemed much more interested in picking at her nails and biting her lip than talking to Obi-Wan. On the one hand, he welcomed the silence. It gave him time to think. On the other hand, he _hated_ it. It gave his mind the space to run free, coming up with all kinds of ridiculous scenarios that Anakin had gotten himself into and that was why he had collapsed in the council chambers. On the one hand, he wanted to feel embarrassed- he was sure that Anakin wouldn’t have come to the council meeting if he was in such poor health. But on the other hand, Obi-Wan knew that Anakin would, and will push himself until he collapses.

He berated himself- he had heard Anakin vomiting again earlier in the day but decided to say nothing. He figured that Anakin wouldn’t want him to intervene, wouldn’t want him to vouch for him and tell the council that he was too ill to come. But Obi-Wan had found out recently, that there was a lot that he had been wrong about in regard to Anakin recently.

He only hoped that this trend wasn’t going to continue.

So, when Bant came, and looked at him with apologetic eyes as she waived Ahsoka forward first, explaining that he should only have one visitor at a time, Obi-Wan sat back in his seat and sighed. Agreeing that Ahsoka should go first.

“How is he?” He asked her as she walked back into the waiting room. Ahsoka shrugged.

“He’s awake.” She said, looking at the ground and then up at him.

“Are you gonna talk to him?” She asked softly.

“If he is willing to talk.” Obi-Wan replied, and then immediately regretted it. Ahsoka sighed, her shoulders deflating.

“He’s still pretty out of it- not to mention whatever drug they gave him is making him so tired that he can barley keep his eyes open.”

Obi-Wan stroked his beard, deep in thought. He didn’t want to voice them out loud to Ahsoka though. He looked up at Bant who waived her hand at him, a sign that she was ready whenever he was.

“I’d like to see him anyway- just so…” his voice trailed off and he sighed. “I’d like to see him regardless.” He walked forward, following Bant down the halls until they reached a private room. She waived the door open and he stepped inside.

There on the bed, was Anakin. His eyes were closed, and now that Obi-Wan could get a better look at him, he wondered when he had become so pale. When did the dark circles under his eyes become so prominent? Were his cheekbones always that sharp? He sighed again, sitting in a chair by the bed and staring. Ahsoka was right- whatever they had given Anakin had certainly made him drowsy. He didn’t even react to Obi-Wan entering, but he wasn’t sure if that was because he was actually asleep, or if he just didn’t want to talk.

Obi-Wan reached out, his hand hovering over Anakin’s but then pulled it back and set it in his lap. His comlink beeped on his arm, and Obi-Wan raised it to answer, when he heard a weak groan come from Anakin. He set his arm back down and stared- holding his breath as he watched Anakin slowly open his eyes.

“Anakin.” He whispered, relief filling his voice. He watched as Anakin squeezed his eyes shut, before opening them again.

“Why… why are you here?” He whispered, looking Obi-Wan in the eyes. “Don’t you have a council meeting to finish?” The question hit Obi-Wan like a speeder. How could Anakin think that a council meeting was more important than this? How could Anakin think that a council meeting was more important than the fact that he had just collapsed at said council meeting?

“The council meeting was called off once Master Windu brought you down here.” Obi-Wan replied. “We are worried about you.” A pause.

“I am worried about you.”

“It’s-“Anakin began but Obi-Wan stopped him.

“Please do not say ‘it’s fine’, because it _isn’t_ , Anakin. You’ve been eating less, sleeping less, getting sick in the middle of the day…” Obi-Wan trailed off, his anger at the situation being quickly overcome with worry.

“I know that something is wrong. And I know that you don’t want to tell me. And that you don’t want to worry Ahsoka.” He said after taking a deep breath. “But something is clearly wrong, otherwise we wouldn’t be here right now.”

“I don’t know what’s wrong.” Anakin replied, covering his eyes with the arm that wasn’t connected to an IV line. “I don’t know.” Obi-Wan felt his shoulders slump. He felt the annoyance at Anakin hiding something fade away. He wanted to be angry at Anakin for hiding whatever was going on, for not talking to him, for not opening up after the mission. He wanted to be disappointed in the fact that his grief at the situation had been so overwhelming. But while he expected rage, anger, and the desire for revenge, he didn’t expect him to sink into a grief so low, that it surprised everyone. Gone was the spark from his eyes, replaced with a dull, lifeless smile. He had become more reserved, more withdrawn, and when Obi-Wan had returned from the mission, he almost wished that Anakin were angry instead. Obi-Wan opened his mouth to speak, but Anakin beat him to it.

“Bant told me that they were going to run some tests, but she isn’t sure either.” He sighed. “I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”

“You’ve never been one for patience.” Obi-Wan remarked. But instead of getting a witty response back, all Anakin did was shrug.

“I’m tired.” He whispered. “Can we please talk about this later?” And Obi-Wan couldn’t say no, no matter how much he wanted to. He nodded and stood from the seat. Anakin dropped his arm back down at his side, sighing as he kept his eyes closed. Obi-Wan wanted to reach out again, but stopped himself, again.

The first night that Obi-wan spent in their quarters without Anakin, it was quiet. Too quiet. He had grown so used to hearing Anakin move about- whether he was making something in the kitchen, tinkering with a droid, talking to Ahsoka, or just sitting on the couch while he read something, Obi-Wan was so _used_ to Anakin being around, that he wasn’t sure what to do now. Ahsoka had come back before he did, but she had locked herself in her own room, and Obi-Wan wasn’t going to try and get her to come out and talk. He knew that she needed time to process everything, and unlike with what had happened a month ago, there was no deception here.

There was no underlying plot, no mission that Anakin was trying to fulfill. It was just Anakin, trying his best despite the mounting pressure on his shoulders. Obi-Wan sighed, watching as the speeders passed by the common room window. On the one hand, he wanted Anakin to act differently. On the other hand, his mind was consumed with guilt and putting so much pressure on someone so young. When he was Anakin’s age, he was still a padawan. Not a general in a war, a Jedi knight, and a master in his own right- to a student that shared so many of his qualities that it was startling at times.

The second night, his heart began to ache from the silence. Ahsoka had continued her normal schedule, and she had begun to open up to him more- after he coerced her into having tea with him that was. He could tell that she was uncomfortable, and he didn’t make her stay for long. After all, she was the one who had held his dead body a month ago. That would make anyone uncomfortable.

And he knew that Ahsoka understood the value of duty, the needs of the many over the few. He knew that both Anakin and Ahsoka understood. But what he had missed, and what Mace had tried to warn him about was their youth.

Yes, Anakin was an exceptional knight, and Ahsoka was an exceptional padawan. But he had just turned twenty-one and Ahsoka had just turned fifteen. It was their youth, that Mace had warned him about. Not that they wouldn’t take it well because they weren’t good Jedi, but because in a way, all they had known was war and its losses. And he warned Obi-Wan, warned him that there was only so much a young heart could take. Warned him that perhaps they should send another master- as Anakin was going to be integral to the mission and was still recovering from being held hostage from Dooku. But Obi-Wan had insisted- he _knew_ they could handle it. And he was so _proud_.

And he was so _sad_.

The third night, he sat with Ahsoka at their kitchen table, having made more amends with their relationship earlier in the day.

“Have you gone to see Master Skywalker?” She asked tentatively. Obi-Wan shook his head, anxiety already beginning to pool in his stomach.

“Has something happened?’ He asked eagerly, cursing himself for not checking in with Bant earlier in the week. But he thought it would be good for him to give Anakin more space.

He hoped he wasn’t wrong about that Anakin.

“He’s been placed on medical leave. Again. For the next month.” Ahsoka said and bit her lip.

“How come?” Obi-Wan asked, his words rushed.

“They… they think there’s something wrong with his heart.” Obi-Wan shot up from the table. He had been expecting to hear that he hadn’t been sleeping enough, or eating enough, and that he needed to take better care of himself.

“Master!” Ahsoka exclaimed as he ran out the door. “Where are you going?”

“To see Anakin!” He replied, turning his head over his shoulder. He heard footsteps behind him and knew that Ahsoka was following along- if nothing else so that she wasn’t alone in their apartment. He rushed past doctors, healers, and nurses, through the halls and then he stopped suddenly, outside of Anakin’s door.

“Master?” Ahsoka asked, looking up at him. Obi-Wan inhaled and waived the door open, stepping inside.

The lights were off this time, and Obi-Wan realized that with a start that it was late, and Anakin was probably asleep. He realized that he should let Anakin sleep- he probably needed all the rest that he could get.

“I’ll… I’ll wait for you back in our quarters.” Ahsoka whispered in the dark. He heard her turn around and walk out, but his eyes were focused on the person in the bed in front of him.

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan whispered, slowly approaching the bed. “Anakin.” He repeated, louder this time. He heard a soft groan, and watched as the lump on the bed shifted, turning to face him.

“This better be good, Obi-Wan.” Anakin replied, his voice thick with sleep.

“Your heart.” Obi-Wan said. He heard Anakin sigh.

“What about it?”

“Ahsoka- she said that there was something wrong.” Obi-Wan replied, wondering why it had suddenly become so hard to speak his mind.

“They gave me a regulator and said I could leave tomorrow morning.”

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan sighed.

“And the medication they want me to take makes me groggy.”

“Well, your body could probably use the rest.” Obi-Wan replied.

“Probably.” Anakin whispered back with a faint smile. And it felt as if the world had been lifted off Obi-Wan’s shoulders when he saw that. As if he had let go of something that he didn’t even know that he was holding. He sat down on the chair next to the bed, and when he reached up to brush a lock of hair out of Anakin’s face, he didn’t hesitate. He kept running his hands through Anakin’s hair, and smiled as he watched as Anakin fought to stay awake.

“You should sleep now; we can talk later.” Obi-Wan said as he watched Anakin’s eyelids flutter again. But he shook his head.

“You’re here now.” Anakin whispered while frowning.

“And I’ll be here later too.” Obi-Wan replied. Anakin opened up his eyes and looked at him but didn’t say anything. Only closing them again as Obi-Wan’s hand continued to comb through his hair. Once Obi-Wan was sure that Anakin had fallen back asleep, he quietly got up out of the chair, taking one last look back at the bed before leaving the room, the door sliding shut behind him.

The first night Anakin was back, their apartment felt normal- well as normal as it could be for the time being. Anakin had been placed on indefinite medical leave, leaving Ahsoka on coruscant as well. And since Obi-Wan usually went on missions with Anakin, that meant that he was essentially grounded as well.

But it was nice, to have a break from the war, and watch as Ahsoka and Anakin teased each other in the common room. But it was different this time. Instead of being animated, Anakin sat on their small couch, a blanket covering his lower half while he smiled and talked to her. It was a start, and Obi-Wan knew that, but he still struggled to look past how unwell Anakin still looked, despite being released from the halls of healing almost ten hours ago. He watched as Ahsoka excused herself, standing up and claiming that she had an upcoming exam to study for before leaving for her quarters.

“You should probably think about going to your quarters as well, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said. He took a step forward, watching as Anakin hesitated before moving to stand.

“Do you need any help?” He asked, but Anakin shook his head, slowly moving and setting the blanket aside. He could sense the frustration coming off of him through their bond, and reached over, wrapping an arm around his shoulder.

“I can’t believe I’ll pass out if I stand too fast.” Anakin grumbled and rolled his eyes. He looked at Obi-Wan.

“How am I supposed to do things now if when I stand up too quickly, I just end up right back on the floor?”

“I think that is your body telling you that you should not be doing things, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said as he steered them towards Anakin’s quarters. Anakin waived the door open and sat down on the bed, watching as Obi-Wan still stood next to him.

“You can sit down, you know.” Anakin said, making room for him. Obi-Wan sat down, looking down at his lap, before reaching over and taking Anakin’s hand in his own.

“I’m sorry. I misjudged the mission, misjudged how much you and Ahsoka could handle and-“

“Can you stay?” Anakin asked, cutting him off. “With me.” He added on softly.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan replied, brushing the same lock of hair out of Anakin’s face again. Anakin looked away and smiled, before looking back up at Obi-Wan and yawning, and then rubbing his eyes.

“Something tells me that you’re more tired than you’re letting on.” Obi-Wan said.

“It’s those damn pills.” Anakin mumbled, pulling the covers back and laying down underneath them. Obi-Wan got under the covers with him, smoothing his hair back again while Anakin closed his eyes.

“It might be for the best you know- all this rest will do you some good.” Obi-Wan replied. He sighed.

“I know you haven’t been sleeping, dear one.” Anakin shrugged.

“Wasn’t tired then.” He mumbled, scooting further under the covers. “’m tired now though.” He sighed, blinking up at Obi-Wan.

“Will you be here in the morning?” He whispered.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan said with a smile. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading!


	15. chapter 14

Anakin pressed his hand against the door after it slid shut. He knew the consequences of what he had done. He could see the virus moving through the air, inhaling more and more with each breath that he took.   
But he kept breathing. It wasn't that bad yet. 

"General Skywalker!" Rex's voice called out from his com.

"I'm here, Rex." Anakin said, bringing the com up to his face. He swallowed thickly- already the virus was making his chest feel tighter and his throat burn. It swirled through the air, the blue turning shades of purple when it went by the red lights in the room.  
But he kept breathing. 

"All of the men have made it into the safe room on the west end of the compound." There was a pause before he spoke again. 

"Have you been exposed to the virus?" Anakin swallowed again, biting his lip.

"I have, but don't worry about me. Worry about the other men." He replied. 

"Sir, we have to get you out of there. We don't know how long it'll take until-"

"No." Anakin said firmly, turning away to cough into his elbow. "Obi-Wan will get here in time. I need you to focus on getting everyone else out." 

"Yes sir." Rex said, and then the com was silent. Anakin dropped his arm, staring at the comlink on his wrist as his body began to shake with chills from his fever. He slowly sat down on the floor, his back pressed against the door, and coughed again, placing a hand over his chest as if it would get rid of the pain.  
But he kept breathing. 

"Anakin." Obi-Wan's voice said urgently. Anakin looked at his com again. 

"Obi-Wan." He rasped, and then cleared his throat. "I'm here." 

"Ahsoka and I are on our way to get a cure for the virus." He said. Anakin was sure that his master was trying to keep a brave face for Ahsoka, but in their bond he could feel the concern, the anxiety, the fear.   
Anakin wanted to wash it all away, grab Obi-Wan and tell him that everything was going to be alright.

"We need you to keep talking to us." He continued. "We have to keep you awake and alert."   
Anakin coughed again, and even though Obi-Wan wasn't there in front of him, he had no trouble picturing the expression on his face. Despite the dizziness that came with the last coughing fit, he kept breathing, watching the virus swirl and settle on the shelves in the room. Watched as it cast strange shadows across the room. 

"I can do that." He said after a moment, closing his eyes. He had to keep talking to them. He had to keep breathing for them.   
But he was afraid.   
Deep down, a voice whispered in his ear, telling him that he might as well give up. There was no cure. It was only a matter of time before the virus killed him. But he wanted to live- he had to live. He had a padawan that he was responsible for. He swore to protect and train her.   
And Obi-Wan. Anakin swallowed again thickly, trying to suppress a sob at the thought of him. He had told himself that when the war was over, he would tell Obi-Wan the truth. How he loved him so much that it hurt.   
But now, it didn't seem like he was going to get the chance.   
He took another deep breath, trying to stop himself from crying even more. 

"Tell us about your favorite star fighter design, master." Ahsoka's voice said from his com. Anakin closed his eyes as more tears slid down his face.   
She didn't deserve this. 

"My favorite star fighter?" Anakin asked, trying to keep his voice even. Another deep breath in, biting his lip to keep himself from coughing while he was trying to talk. 

"It's the same kind that Obi-Wan has-" but it didn't work, and Anakin was cut off by a series of chest-rattling coughs, that made him lean forward, gripping his chest as he gasped for air.

"Master!" Ahsoka's voice called through the com. But it sounded like as if it were far away.   
Like as if he was underwater, listening to her speak from the surface. He looked up, watching the blue virus swirl in the air currents.

  
"Anakin!" Obi-Wan exclaimed. "Anakin!" He cried out again. 

"I'm alright." He said while panting. "I'm here."   
Neither of them were buying it.   
He took another breath in. 

"My favorite star fighter is the one that Obi-Wan has because... well..." He trailed off. 

"Well?" Ahsoka asked. Anakin shook his head. 

"Because I think that the docking system it uses is neat. The hinges are less prone to breaking compared to other models." Anakin said as he tried to rack his brain for a reason. But it was getting harder, the fever was clouding his mind as if it were one of the red lights in the room whose glow was being dimmed by the virus swirling in the air.   
Another breath. He closed his eyes, the weight of his eyelids feeling heavier than he thought that they ever could.

"Anakin, we should be back on Naboo within five hours with the antidote." Obi-Wan said, and he could feel the rush of comfort through the bond, the tentative hope.   
He took another breath, and began to cough again. How long had he been in here? There was no way to tell.   
It seemed like forever, and it seemed like hardly any time had passed between when he had spoken to Rex.

"Did... did you talk to Rex?" Anakin said, blinking and rubbing his eyes. He was tired but he knew that he had to stay awake.

"They're working on getting you out right now, Skyguy. You just gotta hang in there." Ahsoka said. Anakin was sure that she was biting her lip, working as Obi-Wan's copilot.   
He wanted to tell him to watch over her, in case anything happened.   
She deserved better. No one should have to watch their master die like this.

"I'm hanging in here, Snips." He whispered, closing his eyes. 

"What's your favorite color?" She asked after a moment. 

"Blue." He responded, his voice growing weaker.

"Why's that?"

Anakin shrugged. "'S nice." He took another breath in and opened his eyes. 

"A pretty color." He said, watching the virus settle on the floor.  
  
He turned to cough again, leaning forward so that he was now on all fours as the coughs became more violent, his whole body heaving as he gasped and chocked for air. His limbs shook with the effort of keeping him upright, and he collapsed onto his side, the cool metal floor feeling strangely refreshing against his face. He blinked slowly, trying to think of something, anything else.  
He thought of Obi-Wan, and the way he smiled at him when he was proud. The way Obi-Wan laughed when Anakin told him a bad joke or the way he would worry when Anakin had gotten himself into trouble.   
He didn't think he could get himself out of this one though.   
He took another breath in, chocking back another sob.  
I'm sorry. Was what he sent through his bond. He wanted to keep going, and tell Obi-Wan that he loved him, but he was a Jedi.   
And Jedi weren't supposed to have attachments.   
But a small part- a selfish part of Anakin wanted to tell Obi-Wan. Tell him that he was sorry for not being the Jedi that he had hoped for him to become. Sorry that he was going to die like this, cold and alone. Sorry that he had fallen in love. He shivered. 

"Anakin, we're going to get the antidote right now, you have to stay awake, alright?" Obi-Wan's voice rang out in the empty room.

"Alright." He whispered, hoping that they could hear him.  
He wasn't sure how much time had passed- but he could hear Obi-Wan and Ahsoka talking to him again. They sounded mad, but why would they be mad? He hoped that they weren't mad at him.   
That would kill him.   
Another breath in, this one weaker than the last as the virus continued to grip his lungs. He smiled- things could be worse. He could be in here and hear nothing, and be totally alone. But he longed for the feeling of Ahsoka poking his arm to get him to pay attention or Obi-Wan running his hand through his hair.  
He didn't want to die alone.   
Another breath in.  
The voices continued to cry out from the com on his arm, but he no longer had the strength to lift his head an answer. No longer had the strength to open his eyes, and watched as the virus settled all around him, blue and cold.  
But he had to. He couldn't give up, not now, not when he could feel their desperation through their bonds. 

"Obi-Wan." Anakin whispered, to himself more than anyone else. 

"Anakin!" Obi-Wan exclaimed, his voice shaking. "Anakin you must keep talking. You have to say something. Anything." 

"Come on, Skyguy, We're almost there!" Ahsoka shouted, doing her best to encourage him. 

"I-" But he cut himself off. Anakin knew, that it was now or never. He could say something, and change the rest of his life, or stay silent, dying and leaving Obi-Wan to think that he was a better Jedi than he actually was.   
But, Anakin was selfish, and wanted to hear Ahsoka and Obi-Wan talk to him as the world faded out around him. He wanted to hear their voices, see their faces, reach out and tell them that it was going to be alright.   
He heard more yelling. It sounded worse now- urgent, desperate. Like a last call. A last chance.   
But he was so tired. His lungs burned with the effort of keeping him alive. His eyes couldn't find the strength to open.   
He took another breath, listening to as the screams from the com faded out.

* * *

"General Kenobi!" Rex shouted as he ran towards them. 

"We've got General Skywalker!" Obi-Wan rushed forward, all pretense forgotten. He had to see Anakin, reach out and touch him to know that he was still here, still alive.   
He had to tell him that he loved him, and that he didn't know what he would do if he lost him.  
It wasn't a very Jedi-like thing to do, to say, to feel. But Obi-Wan let himself be selfish, just this once.

"Anakin." He whispered as he stared down at the stretcher. Anakin was in front of him, but it wasn't the Anakin that he knew. No, this Anakin was deathly pale, blue lines running across his skin and dark circles under his eyes. His brow was slightly wet with sweat, and Obi-Wan heard him struggle for each breath, his eyelids fluttering rapidly.   
He cupped his cheek gently in his hand, wincing at the heat that came off of him. Obi-Wan sighed, and looked up at the Naboo medics and doctors who had come as soon as they could.

"They expect for him to make a full recovery, once given the antidote. He made it out just in time." One of them said. Obi-Wan felt the tension leave his shoulders, feeling like as if the weight of a whole deep, blue ocean had been lifted off of them.   
He watched as they continued to carry Anakin away, placing him on a speeder to be taken to the capital for immediate medical treatment.   
Obi-Wan watched them go, watched as the dust swirled in the air behind them after the speeders pulled away.

"Master?" Ahsoka asked tentatively, walking towards him. "Do you think they'll let us see him soon?" They watched the dust settle together.

"I'm sure they will." Obi-Wan said, staring straight ahead. He ran a hand through his beard sighing as the speeders vanished over the horizon.

* * *

"They're only allowing one visitor at a time." Obi-Wan told Ahsoka after speaking to a medic. Her shoulders sunk with the news, but then she straightened back up. 

"Well, if they're allowing him to have visitors at all, that must mean he's doing better!" She pointed out. Obi-Wan smiled for the first time in what was probably days.

"That's right, padawan." Obi-Wan said. 

"Are you gonna go see him now?" She asked, tilting her head to the side.   
_Selfish_ "Yes, but I will be sure to keep it brief so that you can come in as well." Obi-Wan told her gently. She nodded, and watched him walk down the hallway, disappearing around the corner.   
Once he knew that Ahsoka couldn't see him anymore, he broke out into a full run. He had to see for himself, that Anakin was alright. The door to his room quickly opened, and Obi-Wan stopped in the doorway, staring at the bed.   
He took a deep breath and then walked in. Slowly, quietly, like as if he were walking on glass, and it would break at any moment, dropping him into a vast sea below. 

"Anakin," he whispered, grabbing Anakin's hand gently.   
A moment passed.   
Obi-Wan felt Anakin's fingers curl around his own. He looked up at his face, watching as his eyelids fluttered open.   
He would never get tired of seeing that shade of blue. 

"Obi-Wan?" He whispered, his fingers continuing to curl around Obi-Wan's. Obi-Wan opened and closed his mouth again, but instead of saying anything, he leaned forward, cupping Anakin's face in his other hand. 

"I thought I lost you." He whispered. Anakin leaned into the touch, closing his eyes. 

"'m right here." He mumbled. 

"I know. I know and I-" Obi-Wan abruptly cut himself off, his voice cracking. Anakin blearily opened his eyes again, and Obi-Wan couldn't help but look away when they met his. 

"Stop." He whispered, reaching up with his other hand, turning Obi-Wan's face back towards him. 

"I know what's running through your head." Anakin said.  
  
 _Selfish_ "You shouldn't worry about me." Obi-Wan said with a sad smile. "It's you that we should be worrying about." 

"I'm always going to worry about you."

"That is my line." Obi-Wan responded, sitting down on the bed and leaning close to Anakin. They didn't say anything, but they didn't let go of each other either. Anakin's grip on his hands was reassuring, comforting.   
It reminded him that he was here.  
He knew that he shouldn't want this. But he couldn't help himself. He sighed, his shoulders slumping, and then blushed as Anakin ran a thumb over his hand.   
He gripped Anakin's hands tighter, the room still silent. 

"You should get some more rest." Obi-Wan said after a moment. But Anakin didn't let go. 

"Stay with me." He whispered. 

"What?" Obi-Wan said, his eyes wide. 

"Stay. I- I want you to stay." Anakin said. "I..." He trailed off, but Obi-Wan could feel his emotions through their bond.  
 _I need you. I love you._

"I'll stay." Obi-Wan replied gently readjusting the way he sat on the bed so that he was now next to Anakin. Whose head was now leaning against his shoulder.  
They stared at their hands, intertwined with each other in front of them. 

"You'll stay?" Anakin asked again.

"For as long as you want me to." 

"Then I guess, that you're never gonna leave." Anakin replied with a small smile.

"That is alright with me." Obi-Wan said.


	16. chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> takes place during the clone wars

Obi-Wan looked at the map of the Kaminoan facility in front of them. To his left stood Shaak Ti, her hands behind her back and to his right stood Anakin, his arms crossed over his chest. Obi-Wan sighed and ran a hand over his face.

“We’ve looked over this map more times than I can count.” Anakin said, looking at Obi-Wan. “I can’t think of any other ways that we can fortify the city any better.”

“I agree, but the separatists are not easy to fool.” Shaak warned. “They are going to exploit any weakness that they can find, including the city’s support system.

Anakin tilted his head to the side slightly. “Support system?” She gestured towards the map, zooming in over the pillars that held the city’s structures over the planet’s vast oceans.

“If the separatists take out these pillars that hold up the city, this whole place will be underwater within an hour.” She explained.

“Surely you don’t think that the separatists would be that bold.” Obi-Wan replied while looking at her.

“If they taken down those supports while they’re trying to invade, then they’ll also-“ Anakin stopped speaking, scrunching up his nose before turning to sneeze several times into the crook of his elbow.

“They’ll also drown.” He finished. “Why would they waste their own resources on that?” Obi-Wan and Shaak shared a look, but neither of them said anything.

“It is a risky gamble, but we know that the separatists are willing to take greater risks than that.” Shaak said.

“So… what are we gonna do about this?” Anakin asked after a moment, tilting his head to the side again. Obi-Wan sighed.

“There isn’t much we can do, other than make sure that they never reach those pillars.” Obi-Wan said. “We can split up into groups, each one of us guarding a different section of the city and taking as many men with us as we can.”

“I am sure that the men will be eager to defend their home.” Shaak added on. Obi-Wan zoomed back out on the map and pointed at a section of the city that was behind the other two.

“Anakin, you and your men will guard this section, while Master Ti and I take the other two.” He said.

“Why do I get the one in the back?” Anakin asked.

“Because you’re the youngest.” Obi-Wan said with a small smile. “Now, let’s get going.”

Anakin rolled his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading!


	17. chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Qui-Gon is alive here!

Obi-Wan was pleasantly surprised at how Anakin had become so popular with so many of the Jedi masters. He did wish though, that his popularity extended towards his interactions with the other children his age, but he was sure that Anakin just needed time. His padawan was quite shy, and often didn’t speak until spoken to. It was a habit that Obi-Wan suspected came from Anakin’s upbringing, and a habit that he hoped he could help break Anakin out of.

But there were other times where he could have sworn that Anakin could have talked his ears off. Once you asked him about a subject that he was interested in- whether it be droids, ships, maps, or his most recent interest, oceanic creatures, Anakin made sure to learn as much as he could about a subject and would tell anyone who asked him about it everything that he had learned.

And it was that kind of drive for knowledge that made the Jedi masters like him so much. Qui-Gon had remarked to him the other day in their quarters, that perhaps the reason for why everyone seemed to like Anakin so much was not just that, but also he was quite different from how Obi-Wan acted at the same age. Obi-Wan became flustered at the reminder of how he once was, causing Anakin to pester both of them for a story about how Obi-Wan used to misbehave.

All in all, he was happy that Anakin seemed to be adjusting. There were days where he didn’t seem to adjust as well-, he was still small for his age, which was another side effect from his upbringing. Days where Anakin was exhausted from trying to keep up- and Obi-Wan had later found out that the exhaustion may also be due to Anakin’s mineral levels in his blood being lower than what they should. On those days, despite being able to sense Anakin’s frustration, he often did not express it in front of others, rather waiting until they returned to their quarters before locking himself in his bedroom. And despite the moods that he could find Anakin in at times, they often seemed to resolve themselves once he had been able to rest.

Which is where Obi-Wan currently found his padawan, asleep with Plo Koon nearby, a holobook in his hands, in the room of a thousand fountains.

“Ah, Knight Kenobi.” Plo said quietly, looking up as Obi-Wan walked towards him. “Qui-Gon told me to expect you at any moment.”

“Did Anakin talk to you about his newfound interest to the point where he tired himself out?” Obi-Wan asked, looking at the sleeping eleven-year-old.

“Perhaps.” Plo replied. “He has taken quite an interest in deep sea creatures recently, although it is not surprising. Surely any child from a desert planet would marvel at the idea of entire planets covered in water.” Obi-Wan smiled and sat down on the soft grass.

“Do you have any intention of waking him up?” Obi-Wan asked.

“I do not.”


	18. chapter 17

Anakin ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Even though the war had been going on for almost a year at this point, he didn’t think he had ever been this stressed out until now. Not even when he accidentally broke that one power tool in Watto’s workshop. No, now that he was responsible for not only a 15-year-old padawan, but also a five-year-old youngling, in addition to all of his other responsibilities, that’s what made it so stressful.

But despite all of that, he loved having Ahsoka around. She was a brilliant student, and although he would never admit it- funnier than he was. And she was a great help with Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan, who had suddenly gotten de-aged a few months after the war broke out, and instead of being in his thirties, was now a five-year-old again. Making Anakin the adult in the room, and the person who made the decisions.

But Anakin hadn’t even turned twenty-one yet, so when Obi-Wan asked him if they could have ice cream for dinner, or if Ahsoka asked if she could stay up late with him and watch a movie, he couldn’t say no. How was he supposed to say no to ice cream for dinner or watching a funny movie? Anakin sighed, and checked the time, realizing that he had to go get Obi-Wan soon from his class, then go to the market, and be back in time before Ahsoka got back so that they could eat together. Now that she was going through a growth spurt, she had quite the appetite, and Anakin was quickly learning which dishes were her favorites now that they were spending significantly less time on the battlefield. He quickly grabbed his cloak and boots, putting them on and rushing out the door towards the classrooms where the younglings were.

After getting Obi-Wan, they walked through the temple, Anakin slowing his pace so that Obi-Wan could keep up and listened to him talk about his day. Ahead, he saw Mace approaching them from down the hall.

“Skywalker.” Mace greeted while nodding. “I am glad to see that you have been adjusting so well to your… new changes.”

“Thank you, master.” Anakin replied, bowing his head slightly. New changes didn’t even begin to cover how much Anakin’s life had been turned around over the past three months.

“Hello there!” A child’s voice said. Anakin and Mace both looked at Obi-Wan, who was smiling and waiving at Mace.

“Oh force.” Anakin said while covering his mouth, trying not to laugh (and failing.)

“Did- did he just say that?” Mace asked, incredulous at Obi-Wan. Anakin had never seen the usually stoic master smile that hard.

“Say that again, young Kenobi.” Mace requested. He looked back at Anakin and winked.

“Hello there!”

They both burst out laughing, and Anakin laughed so hard that he shed a few tears.

“Hey!” Obi-Wan said, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting. “That’s not nice!”

“My apologies.” Mace said, still grinning. He looked at Anakin.

“Well, at least there seems to be a bright side to all of this.”

“Yeah, until he wakes me up at an ungodly hour in the morning demanding breakfast.” Anakin muttered.


	19. chapter 18

Obi-Wan looked down, watching as despite his quick pace, his padawan still was managing to keep up with him, a determined look on his face.

“Hello.” Anakin said, waiving at something. Obi-Wan looked around- there were no other Jedi near them. He looked down at Anakin again, who seemed to be watching as a cleaning droid came up to him and beeped at him several times.

“He says he likes the improvements I made to his motivator.” Anakin said, looking up at Obi-Wan and smiling.

“Does he?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded.

“He had a bad motivator belt and I fixed it!” Anakin exclaimed proudly. The cleaning droid beeped again before rolling itself away and down the hall.

“That’s very nice, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said as he turned to continue walking through the halls. How Anakin still was managing to keep up with him, he didn’t know. He knew that he must be getting tired- Anakin had been up since the early hours of the morning, and between going to classes, saber practice, and meditation practice, he had no idea how he was still keeping up. Obi-Wan slowed his pace down slightly, the more he thought about it. He didn’t need to get to the archives that quickly, and he was sure that Anakin would appreciate walking at a slower pace.

Once in the archives, Obi-Wan had noticed that he hadn’t heard anything from Anakin for quite some time. That wasn’t surprising- often when he brought Anakin with him, his apprentice would wander off towards a section of holobooks that he was more interested in reading, or telling Madame Nu about what he had found that day in the archives. But when he leaned back in his seat and saw that Madame Nu was working idly at her desk, he frowned.

“Master?” A voice asked from behind. Obi-Wan jumped and quickly turned around to see Anakin standing in front of him, rubbing one of his eyes with a balled-up fist.

“Tired, padawan?” Obi-Wan asked softly. Anakin shrugged.

“A little.” He replied, and then yawned. Obi-Wan stood up from his chair and stretched.

“Come, we can come back tomorrow.” He said as he walked past Anakin and towards the door. As they left and began to walk back towards their quarters, Obi-Wan made sure to walk even slower than he had been before, noticing how even then, Anakin’s pace had slowed considerably by the time they had reached their quarters. He had also noticed that Anakin had grown considerably quieter and was no longer telling him about the new sea creature he read about today, and instead was walking silently at his side.

“Do you think that deep sea creatures are ugly because no one can see them?” Anakin mumbled as they walked into quarters.

“Anakin, what- “Obi-Wan sighed. “Never mind.” He said and laughed softly.

“What?” Anakin asked, looking up at Obi-Wan.

“Nothing. Why don’t you go get some rest? You can tell me all about ugly deep sea creatures tomorrow.”


	20. chapter 19

Obi-Wan stood outside an entrance to a deeper crystal cave on Ilum. His hands were in the pockets of his coat as he waited for Anakin to return from his journey to find the crystal for his first saber.

Anakin had only been his apprentice for a few months, and Obi-Wan was quickly learning a lot about him in that amount of time. Some of his traits were odder than others. For example, while Anakin was typically a happy child, there would be times where his eyes seemed far away, and he retreated into himself. Or other days where the boy would be more irritable than usual. Or days where he was more tired than usual. But Obi-Wan figured that it was all a part of the adjustment process, especially as Anakin was adjusting to a new sol cycle. But there were several consistencies as well. Things like Anakin asking as many questions as he could about a subject or taking apart whatever he could get his hands on or telling Obi-Wan that the temple was cold.

It was the last one that worried him. Anakin was still struggling to adjust to Coruscant’s climate. He chose to wear darker and thicker robes, and despite that, Obi-Wan still saw him shivering regularly. And while he figured Anakin had a strong immune system- he got over whatever bug he had picked up relatively quickly, it was the fact that he seemed to get sick so often is what concerned him. He remembered the healers telling him that it wasn’t unusual, and as he got older and grew more accustomed to Coruscant’s climate, his body would continue to adjust as well.

But regardless, it made him want to postpone bringing Anakin to an ice planet for as long as he could. But Anakin had insisted, and the other children his age were beginning to build their own sabers as well. And eventually, Obi-Wan relented, even if he had a bad feeling about it. He did however, make sure to have Anakin wear extra layers, and reminded him that he could go when he was ready.

He looked up as he heard footsteps approach him, relived to see Anakin emerging from the cave.

“Anakin!” He called out with a smile. His padawan continued to walk forward, but Obi-Wan frowned as he was able to get a better look at him.

He looked unwell.

“Master, I did it!” Anakin said with a smile, holding out the crystal for him to see. In his palm was a deep blue crystal. Obi-Wan knew that it was originally clear, but by bonding with the crystal, Anakin had gotten it to change to a unique shade that matched his eyes. Obi-Wan gently took the crystal, inspecting it in his hand and holding it up to the light.

“It’s beautiful.” He said softly, amazed at how the crystal reflected and refracted the light. Amazed at how clear it sang in the force. He handed it back to Anakin, pride swelling in his chest.

“You should be proud of yourself, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said with a smile and placed a hand on Anakin’s shoulder. He was shaking. Obi-Wan moved his hand so that he was now gently rubbing Anakin’s arm.

“Although, something tells me that you would much rather be back in the ship where there’s heating.” Anakin nodded eagerly, smiling up at Obi-Wan again. They made their journey back to the ship in relative silence, but Obi-Wan noticed that Anakin continued to slow his pace as they pressed forward.

Once inside the ship, Obi-Wan quickly shed his coat, and looked over at Anakin.

“I can hear your teeth chattering.” Obi-Wan said as he moved to unzip Anakin’s jacket as well.

“’s cold.” Anakin muttered and sniffled.

“Why don’t I make us both something warm to drink? That will probably warm you up.” Obi-Wan suggested, Anakin nodded. But when Obi-Wan moved to take off the thick outer tunic that Anakin was wearing, a small cold hand was placed over his.

“Wanna keep it on.”

“You’ll overheat.” Obi-Wan responded. But Anakin shook his head.

“’s cold.” Obi-Wan sighed and dropped his hands to his sides.

“Alright. But if you’re sweating within the hour, then I get to say I told you so.” Anakin huffed, but didn’t say anything.

“I’m gonna go put my crystal away.” Anakin said as he walked towards his bunk.

“Alright. I’ll have your drink waiting.” Obi-Wan replied, watching him go. But when twenty minutes had passed, and Anakin still hadn’t returned, Obi-Wan got up in search of him, his drink in his hand.

“Anakin?” He whispered, slowly approaching the small lump on Anakin’s bed. He placed a hand on his forehead and sighed. It was too warm.

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan repeated, shaking his shoulder gently. Anakin groaned weakly and opened his eyes, before gasping and quickly sitting up. But before either of them was able to say anything, Anakin began to cough, and cough. Obi-Wan frowned as he rubbed small circles into Anakin’s back, all too familiar with this scenario.

“I told you that you were going to get sick if we came here.” Obi-Wan said as Anakin caught his breath.

“It was worth it.” Anakin replied while shrugging. Obi-Wan felt Anakin shiver again under his arms, and moved to go grab his cloak, draping it over Anakin’s shoulders when he got back.

“Last time you said you didn’t want my germs on your cloak.” Anakin mumbled, wrapping himself in the fabric.

“I am making an exception.” Obi-Wan said while shrugging. He passed Anakin the cup that he brought.

“Here. Drink some of this and then you can lay back down.” Anakin nodded and took the cup, slowly sipping for a few moments and then handing it back to Obi-Wan, laying back down on his bunk.

“Are you mad at me?” Anakin whispered after a moment.

“No, why would I be mad at you?” Obi-Wan asked, surprised at the question as he ran a hand through Anakin’s hair.

“Because I got sick.” Anakin mumbled.

“To be honest, padawan, I would have been surprised if you didn’t get sick after this.” Obi-Wan replied. “But for now, I just want you to focus on getting better.”

* * *

Obi-Wan was nervous. They had just landed on Coruscant, after spending three days in hyperspace, and if anything, Anakin had gotten even sicker since then. Usually, he expected all the normal symptoms that came with a head cold, but this was different. Anakin had been consistently running a high fever ever since that first evening that they were back on the ship, and it had only been slowly getting higher and higher from there. He had lost his appetite as they continued on their way back to the temple and wanting to do nothing more than spend most of his time sleeping.

That and the horrendous cough that he had developed, is what made Obi-Wan so concerned. Usually, even when Anakin was unwell, he still wanted to have something to play with, something to read, something to do. But now, even when Obi-Wan offered to read with him, his padawan instead asked if he could go back to sleep instead.

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan said, gently shaking his shoulder again. But Anakin didn’t open his eyes right away, instead he began to cough again, and Obi-Wan moved his hand so that he was now rubbing slow circles on his back.

“We’ve landed.” Obi-Wan said, helping Anakin sit up. “And I’m going to take you to the healers right now.”

“Don’t wanna go.” Anakin rasped; his eyes still closed.

“’m tired.” Obi-Wan sighed.

“I know, and I’m sorry. But I’m worried that this could be more than just another head cold and I want someone who knows what they’re doing to look at you.” Anakin opened his eyes and stared at Obi-Wan.

“Ready to get up? Do you think you can walk on your own?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded and slowly moved to get out of the bed. But once he swayed on the spot, Obi-Wan quickly scooped him up into his arms, Anakin’s forehead resting against his neck.

“Anakin, are you alright?” He asked- and then felt quite silly. Clearly, Anakin was not alright, but he felt his padawan nod in his arms regardless. Obi-Wan quickly walked down the ramp of the ship, holding Anakin tight in his arms as he made his way through the halls of the temple and towards the halls of healing.

“Well, it looks like a bad case of pneumonia.” Bant said as she walked into the examination room.

“How are you feeling, Anakin?” She asked, turning to face him.

“Tired.” He whispered; his eyes still closed.

“Yeah, I bet you are. But Obi-Wan told me about what a great job you did on Ilum and getting your first crystal!” She watched as Anakin smiled slightly, but his face fell again after a moment.

“He’s probably not going to start feeling like himself again for a little while, and you’ll have to keep him in your quarters for about a month.”

“A month?” Obi-Wan asked, trying to figure out how in the galaxy he would keep Anakin entertained for that long.

“Don’t worry about it- he’ll probably be too sick to want to do anything for most of the time anyway.” She said, and then pointed at the datapad.

“I wrote some instructions on there, as well as what kind of medicine to give him. I also sent it to you.”

“Thank you, Bant.” Obi-Wan said, passing the datapad back to her.

“And bring him back if he gets any worse.” She said as Obi-Wan began to gently shake Anakin’s shoulder, and helped him sit up.

“I will.” Obi-Wan said, not taking his eyes off of Anakin.

“Do you think you can make it back to our quarters by yourself?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin slowly shook his head, and Obi-Wan leaned over, scooping Anakin up into his arms again.

“Bye Anakin, I hope you feel better soon!” Bant said as she waived at him.

“Bye.” He mumbled, his eyes sliding shut as he rested his head against Obi-Wan.

* * *

“I thought you grew out of getting this sick, but you continue to impress me, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said as he walked into Anakin’s bedroom.

“’m full of surprises.” Anakin mumbled, keeping his eyes closed. Obi-Wan sat down on the edge of the bed, running his hands through Anakin’s curls.

“Remember the first time you got pneumonia after getting your crystal?” Obi-Wan whispered. Anakin groaned softly.

“I don’t need reminding.” He replied. “I’m currently reliving it.”

“I told you that you shouldn’t have taken that mission on Kamino.” Obi-Wan said. Anakin chucked slightly, and then ducked his head under the covers to cough.

“Sorry.” He whispered once he was done.

“Don’t apologize. I thought we covered that the first time.” Obi-Wan said. A moment passed before he spoke again.

“Those coughs sound like they hurt.” He noted.

“They do.” Anakin whispered back. “Everything hurts.” His eyes opened slightly, and he looked at Obi-Wan.

“Ahsoka?” He asked.

“She’s in class right now.” Obi-Wan said as he continued to run his hand through Anakin’s hair. “Don’t worry about anything except for getting better.” Anakin closed his eyes again and hummed in agreement , but didn’t say anything else, and they lapsed into a comfortable silence as Obi-Wan continued to work his hand through Anakin’s curls.

“You don’t have to stay. I’ll be fine.” Anakin whispered again after a moment. “’m not a kid anymore.”

“I know.” Obi-Wan replied and sighed. “But I want to stay with you anyway, so scoot over.” Anakin moved, lifting the covers up slightly so that Obi-Wan could get under them with him.

“Are you sure?” Anakin asked, opening his eyes again. “I’m all sweaty and gross.” But instead of saying anything in response, Obi-Wan kissed the top of his head.

“I’m sure.” Obi-Wan whispered, adjusting himself so that Anakin’s head was now resting on his chest. Even though Anakin wasn’t saying anything, he could feel the anxiety that he was feeling through their bond.

“Relax, Anakin. I’ve seen you in much worse states than having another bad case of pneumonia.” Obi-Wan said softly. He felt Anakin sigh, and his muscles relax.

“Ugh, I don’t wanna think about that.” Anakin whispered, closing his eyes again. Obi-Wan laughed.

“Then don’t. Get some more rest.”

“Why do you keep telling me to rest? I’m in bed. I’m resting” Anakin grumbled; his voice muffed by Obi-Wan’s robes.

“Because you can barley keep your eyes open as is, dear one.” Obi-Wan said, rubbing small circles on Anakin’s back. He felt Anakin sigh, and his breathing even out as he fell back asleep.


	21. chapter 20

Anakin pushed his hair off his forehead. It was pouring on Kamino, and he could hardly see in front of himself because of the rain. He could hear the marching of the incoming droid army, and knew that Rex was at his side, blasters ready. 

“We’ve got another round of clankers coming up, sir,” Rex said.

“At least there aren’t as many this time.” Anakin replied, straining his voice. He tried not to think about it, but the longer they spent out here, the more and more he had to strain his vocal cords to be heard. But he had a mission to complete, a city to defend. He could worry about his health later.

Anakin rushed forward at the droids, slicing through them as quickly as he could, deflecting blaster bolt after blaster bolt. The rush of the battle kept him focused on his goal, not letting him think about anything else other than defending the city.

Shaak Ti had warned him about how important his section of the city was. How it would all be over if the separatists were able to take out the city’s supports. And Anakin would not fail his men. He kept fighting.

“Keep pushing!” Anakin shouted over the rain, his voice cracking. He rushed forward, the rain evaporating when it made contact with his saber, causing it to hiss. He cut down droid after droid, letting his adrenaline flow through him.

Eventually, he and his men pressed on far enough so that they ran into the others.

“Need some help?” Anakin asked, smirking as he ran up to Obi-Wan’s side. A shiver ran through him, but he tightened his grip on his saber and hoped that Obi-Wan didn’t notice.

“Funny, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said while rolling his eyes, and then lifting his blade to deflect several blaster shots.

“Where’s Master Ti?” Anakin asked, ducking as a shot flew past his head.

“She has successfully protected her part of the city and should be arriving shortly with reinforcements.” Obi-Wan replied. They looked up as they heard a loud ringing sound and watched as droid poppers rained down from above, taking out the majority of the droids that were left.

“Well,” Shaak said as she approached them. “That wasn’t so bad.” She looked at Anakin and frowned.

“Skywalker, you’re shaking,” She pointed out. Obi-Wan reached out and placed a hand on Anakin’s shoulder and frowned.

“Why don’t we go inside and change?” He suggested, ushering Anakin forward, his tone leaving no room for argument. 

“I told you that going on this mission would be a bad idea.” Obi-Wan whispered as he entered his shared quarters with Anakin. He sat down on the bed and rubbed Anakin’s back.

“You’re still shaking,” He noted. He heard a series of muffled sneezes and watched as Anakin looked up at him, squinting slightly.

“There was no way I was gonna pass up on going on a mission with you.” Anakin replied softly.

“But even at the expense of your own health?” Obi-Wan asked as he grabbed his own cloak and draped it over Anakin.

“Is this any better?” Anakin nodded.

“I’m okay Obi-Wan, reall-“But before he could finish he ducked his head back down and began to cough, making Obi-Wan wince in sympathy. His comlink suddenly beeped and he raised his arm to answer.

“Kenobi here.” Obi-Wan said.

“Master Kenobi,” Shaak began. “Master Windu and Master Yoda are waiting for you and Skywalker to come with your report.” Obi-Wan looked back down at Anakin, who was now pushing himself into a sitting position, looking at Obi-Wan for a moment before turning away to sneeze again.

“We’ll be there.” He replied.

“Skywalker, you most certainly are not fine.” Plo said after Anakin had gone though his third coughing fit during the meeting. He felt someone gently elbow his side and looked to see Obi-Wan smirking at him. It was his classic ‘I told you so’ smirk, but he didn’t miss the concerned look in his eyes. Or the way he hand seemed to linger by Anakin’s side.

“To be fair, it was not Skywalker’s idea to come here.” Shaak replied. “He came because Master Kenobi needed reinforcements, and Skywalker was nearby.”

Neither Anakin or Obi-Wan brought up the fact that Anakin would have come anyway, regardless of if how close or far away he was.

“Let us keep this meeting short then. I am sure that all three of you deserve to rest.” Mace said.

“And Skywalker? I don’t want to hear anything about you being back on the battlefield until you’re fully recovered.”

“Yes master,” Anakin rasped, and then winced at how bad his own voice sounded. The three of them stood there for a moment after the hologram faded out, and Obi-Wan wrapped an arm around Anakin’s shoulder.

“Well, you hear Master Windu. I’m sure that means no sneaking out to tinker with anything in the hangar.” Obi-Wan said, steering Anakin out of the briefing room.

Shaak rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Skywalker, how you still have so much energy is beyond me.” She said and then the door slid shut.

“To be honest,” Anakin began tentatively, “I don’t have that much energy left.” He said after a moment. Obi-Wan tightened his grip on Anakin’s shoulder, and gave him a worried glance.

“All the more reason for you to head back to bed, dear one.” He said. Anakin nodded as another chill went up his spine.

“Do you want me to see if I can find you another blanket?” Obi-Wan asked, waiving the door open to their quarters, but Anakin shook his head and then collapsed onto his bunk, kicking his boots off and then curling back up under the cloaks and blankets.

“No,” He whispered, closing his eyes. He opened them again after a moment.

“Stay?” He asked, trying to stop his body from trembling.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan said, sitting down next to him. Anakin nuzzled closer, pressing his face against Obi-Wan’s side.

“Now, did you ask me to stay because you like my company, or because you wanted to use me as your personal heater?”

“Both?” Anakin rasped and then turned away to cough. “Both.” He said readjusting himself. Now that there was no front to put up in front of others, he allowed his muscles to relax. His whole body felt heavy, and he could the beginnings of what was sure to be a painful sinus headache. But the medicine was far away, and Obi-Wan was comfortable and warm.

“You also smell nice,” He mumbled.

“I’m surprised that you can smell anything, considering how stuffed up you sound.” Obi-Wan commented.

“I can’t. I’m talking about in general.” Anakin replied with a huff. But all Obi-Wan did was laugh softly and run a hand through Anakin’s hair.

“And I like how your laugh sounds.”

“At this point, I’m not sure if this is you trying to express your affection towards me, or some kind of feverish rambling.” Obi-Wan remarked.

“Both.” Anakin replied, closing his eyes.


	22. chapter 21

“I won’t be gone for that long.” Obi-Wan said softly. His shoulders slumped when Anakin looked up at him with his bright blue eyes. And while his padawan didn’t say anything to him, Obi-Wan already knew what he was thinking. Between the shared bond and the look on his face, he knew that Anakin wanted him to stay. He knew that Anakin wanted him to sit next to him so that he could tell Obi-Wan all about what he had learned in his classes for the day.

Anakin huffed.

“I promise I won’t be gone that long.”

“You say that every time.” Anakin muttered. Obi-Wan frowned.

“Sometimes council meeting run over their scheduled time.” Obi-Wan pointed out. “It isn’t something that you should take personally, Anakin.” He said while resting a hand on Anakin’s shoulder.

“I guess not.” Anakin mumbled while looking away. He then looked back at Obi-Wan after a moment.

“But when you’re done can we please go to the room of a thousand fountains together?” He asked.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan replied while nodding. He let go of Anakin’s shoulder and walked towards the door of their quarters.

“Don’t do anything rash while I’m gone.” Obi-Wan said, turning back to face Anakin.

“No promises.” Anakin replied with a smile.

“Anakin.” Obi-Wan sighed.

And just like he predicted, the council meeting did go over by not one, but several hours. The sun had now set on Coruscant, and Obi-Wan was sure that Anakin would be bouncing off of the walls when he returned to their quarters. Demanding to do things, asking for dinner, asking what took him so long. Obi-Wan sighed. He was trying to stay focused, but the meeting was boring, and he’d much rather be with Anakin and Bant, helping her teach him how to swim.

“Knight Kenobi.” Master Yoda said. Obi-Wan quickly turned his attention back to the circle of masters in the room, instead of staring out of the window, thinking of all the things that he would rather be doing right now.

“My apologies, master.” Obi-Wan said with a deep bow. “My mind was… elsewhere.”

“See that, I do.” Yoda replied. “Thinking about your padawan, you are.”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Anakin had requested that we go to the room of a thousand fountains once I returned from this meeting.” He sighed.

“But it looks as though it will be too dark for us to do anything.”

“Tomorrow, there always is.” Yoda pointed out. Obi-Wan nodded.

“And finished now, this meeting is.” Yoda said, looking around the room and watching as the other masters nodded in agreement. Obi-Wan quickly bowed and left, rushing through the halls of the temple and back to his shared quarters with Anakin- who hopefully had found a way to entertain himself for all of the extra hours that Obi-Wan was gone.

“Anakin?” Obi-Wan called out as he waved the door open. Their living room was dark. Only the light from the skyscrapers and the nearby buildings were lighting up the room as it came through the window. Still, it was enough for Obi-Wan to see the outline of a very familiar boy on the couch.

“Anakin?” Obi-Wan whispered, approaching him slowly. He laughed softly to himself when he realized what had happened. On the coffee table was a datapad and a stylus, both looking recently used. And on the couch was his padawan, fast asleep, his head squished into the armrest of the couch.

Obi-Wan leaned over, gently cupping Anakin’s cheek in his hand. After a moment, Anakin opened his eyes slowly, and smiled.

“Hi master.” He mumbled.

“It looks like you entertained yourself so much, that you tired yourself out.” Obi-Wan noted while laughing softly.

“You took too long. I got bored.” Anakin replied while sitting up. Obi-Wan’s hand moved away from his face and down towards his shoulder where it rested there for a moment.

“Are you hungry?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded and he stood up and stretched.

“Come then, let’s see what we have to eat.” Obi-Wan said as he turned to head into their small kitchen, Anakin right behind him.

* * *

Obi-Wan rushed through the halls of the temple. When he had heard about the ambush that happened during Anakin’s mission, he feared the worst. And when he finally got a Holo from someone on the mission, his worry only increased when a very tired Ahsoka was on the other end. And she wouldn’t say much about how Anakin was doing.

Which was not a good sign.

But she had told him that they would be returning to the temple several days before he was scheduled to. Which meant that soon enough, he would get to see Anakin for himself, and ask him what happened.

If, Anakin was well enough to do so. But he pushed those thoughts out of his mind.

It was late on Coruscant, and Obi-Wan and his men had only recently returned from their latest mission as well. He contemplated sending a message to Ahsoka but figured that there was a good chance that she was now asleep. And from the way that she looked in their last call, he wanted her to get as much rest as she could.

So, Obi-Wan rushed through the doors and into the halls of healing, breathing heavily as he arrived.

“Obi-Wan!” A familiar voice called.

“Bant!” He replied, elated to see a familiar face. They rushed towards each other.

“Bant, have you seen Anakin, I heard-“Obi-Wan began, his tone frantic, but she just smiled at him.

“We let him go this morning.” She replied. “He should be back in his quarters now. Obi-Wan blinked several times, gathering his thoughts.

“But he needs to rest Obi-Wan, so don’t go and wake him up if he’s asleep.” She warned. Obi-Wan’s shoulders slumped.

“Alright, I won’t.” He said as he backed away from her before turning to rush back out and up to their shared quarters.

When he arrived, he figured that both Anakin and Ahsoka were asleep. The lights were off, the dishes were done, and there wasn’t a sound to be heard. Obi-Wan quietly made his way though their quarters, smiling at the unfolded pile of blankets on the couch, knowing that Anakin probably left them that way. He walked past Ahsoka’s room and hesitated outside of Anakin’s. Obi-Wan took a deep breath, contemplating if he should open the door or not.

He opened the door. And smiled softly as he saw the familiar site of Anakin, asleep and buried under the covers of his bed. The blinds were mostly shut, but little streaks of light were seeping in, dimly illuminating the outline of his body.

Obi-Wan slowly approached the bed and took off his gloves. He sat down on the edge of it, but Anakin still didn’t move. His face was squished into the pillow, and his curls were everywhere.

Obi-Wan gently cupped Anakin’s cheek in his hand, and after a moment, Anakin slowly opened his eyes.

“Hi Obi-Wan.” He whispered, smiling slightly.

Obi-Wan ran his thumb across Anakin’s cheekbone, sighing softly. “Anakin.”

Anakin opened his eyes further. “Is something wrong?” He asked, looking up at Obi-Wan.

“No, no nothing is wrong.” Obi-Wan replied gently. “I was just worried about you.”

“’m fine.” Anakin mumbled, his eyes dropping slightly. Obi-Wan chuckled.

“Sounds like someone needs some more rest.” Obi-Wan noted and Anakin shrugged.

“Can you stay?” He whispered after a moment, looking back up at Obi-Wan, his eyes reflecting the little bit of light that was entering the room.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan replied, but then stood to leave.

“Although I think that my company would better be appreciated after a shower and a change of clothes.” He said as he walked back out of Anakin’s room. And although he tried to move both quickly and quietly, by the time Obi-Wan walked back into Anakin’s bedroom, he had fallen back asleep.

Quietly, slowly, Obi-Wan lifted up the bed covers and got underneath them as well, gently wrapping an arm around Anakin’s torso, and closed his eyes.


	23. Chapter 22

Anakin had been his apprentice for several years now, but at times, Obi-Wan still struggled to communicate with him. There would be times where Anakin would talk to him for what seemed to be hours about some new spaceship model, and there would be times where Anakin hardly spoke at all.

Although their bond wasn’t as new as it once was, Obi-Wan could detect Anakin’s shifting emotions in the force, but it was harder now that Anakin was proving himself to be quite good at shielding.

In fact, he was better at it than all of his peers, using the force to make himself seem smaller than he actually was at times.

It was why Anakin had this habit, is what concerned him. How had he learned such a skill that takes students years to master? That and, why someone who was already small for their age would feel the need to make themselves appear even smaller were questions that kept Obi-Wan up at night.

But it wasn’t something he questioned Anakin about. He had tried to, but he saw the way that Anakin would quickly dodge the questions. The way that Anakin would pretend that he didn’t hear them. The way that Anakin would firmly state that he didn’t want to talk about it.

So, Obi-Wan let it go. For now.

He knew that he needed the truth at some point.

Obi-Wan turned his head when he heard soft thumping coming down from the hall. He looked over at the clock and checked the time. Anakin had class soon.

“You won’t have time to eat anything.” Obi-Wan remarked as Anakin walked into the kitchen. His padawan shrugged.

“I’m not hungry.” He replied softly, pouring the hot water from the kettle into a cup he grabbed.

“Not hungry?” Obi-Wan questioned, alarm bells going off in his head.

  
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you turn down a meal before.” Obi-Wan noted. Anakin looked back at him and shrugged, before turning his attention to the cup of tea that he was holding, lacing the string of the teabag between his fingers as he took a sip.

After a moment, Anakin set the cup of tea down into the sink before heading towards the door. “Have a good day.” Obi-Wan said as Anakin walked out. He heard the door shut, but he didn’t hear Anakin say anything in return.

Obi-Wan got up from where he was sitting at their small kitchen table and walked over to the sink. The mug that Anakin had placed in there was mostly full. The teabag was spinning slightly, and Obi-Wan could feel that the water was still warm when he reached to grab the cup to pour the rest of the tea out.

It looked like today was going to be another one of Anakin’s quiet days.

When he met up with Anakin again after his morning classes had finished, Obi-Wan realized with a start that Anakin looked unwell. Did he miss something this morning? He hadn’t gotten a chance to really look at Anakin’s face very well before he left. But now that he was meeting Anakin in one of the halls of the temple, he could see how his skin looked paler than usual in the sunlight. His fading freckles stood out more. He had dark circles under his eyes.

Anakin was too young to have those.

And when Anakin turned to look up at him, he could see that his face looked flushed as well. Obi-Wan frowned.

“Feeling alright, Anakin?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded.

Obi-Wan, was not convinced.

“Ready to eat?” He asked Anakin, who’s facial expression changed for a moment, but quickly morphed back into one of neutrality.

He nodded again.

“Lead the way then.” He said, gesturing with his arm. Anakin began to walk, but Obi-Wan noticed that he seemed to be walking a little slower than usual. But then suddenly their pace was quickening and Obi-Wan wondered if he was just seeing things that weren’t actually there.

Besides, it wasn’t as if Anakin wasn’t eating. He was. Obi-Wan was watching as Anakin stared out the window, idly stirring his bowl of half-finished mushroom soup. He could tell from the look in his eyes, that Anakin’s mind was somewhere far away.

But Obi-Wan wanted to test something.

“Are you going to finish your meal, Anakin?” He asked innocently. He figured that since Anakin didn’t seem to be in the mood to speak, he would use his actions as a way to better judge Anakin’s headspace.

Anakin turned back to him and blinked, before staring down at his bowl. He shrugged again.

“Doesn’t taste as well when it’s cold, does it?” obi-Wan asked, trying to prompt Anakin into a conversation with him.

“No, but…” Anakin trailed off and sighed.

“I don’t wanna waste it.” He mumbled, staring into the bowl. He huffed and rested his chin in the palm of his hand.

“You can always save it and eat it later.” Obi-Wan suggested, now confident that something was amiss with his padawan. Anakin nodded, and pushed the bowl away from himself, and then looked up at Obi-Wan, his eyes full of guilt, and Obi-Wan wasn’t sure why.

“I can put it away for you while you head to your next class.” Obi-Wan suggested, picking up Anakin’s bowl and heading towards the sink with his dishes as well.

“You have a saber training session next, right?” Obi-Wan asked over the sound of running water as he began to do the dishes.

“Yeah.” He heard Anakin reply, straining his ears to hear it over the water.

“Excited to train?” Obi-Wan asked as he turned around while drying his hands. And while he expected to see Anakin sitting up, getting ready to leave again, he saw Anakin slumped over the small table in their kitchen, resting his head on it.

“Anakin?” Obi-Wan asked softly, walking over and placing a hand on his forehead. Anakin’s eyes were closed, but he quickly opened them and flinched slightly when Obi-Wan touched him.

“Not feeling so well, are we?” Obi-Wan said, frowning as he felt the heat that was radiating off of Anakin.

“Not really.” Anakin replied, closing his eyes, and trying to squirm away from Obi-Wan’s touch.

“Your hand is cold.” He mumbled.

“My hand isn’t cold.” Obi-Wan responded, moving his hand down to Anakin’s shoulder and squeezing gently.

“And if you’re admitting to not feeling well, then you really must feel be sick.” Obi-Wan noted. Anakin shrugged, before sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

“Perhaps you should instead head back to bed. How does that sound?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin nodded before pushing the seat away from the table and standing. But he only had taken a step forward before swaying, Obi-Wan reaching out to catch him before he hit his head on the edge of the table.

“Anakin!” He exclaimed, moving him away from the table. Anakin groaned softly.

“If you were feeling this unwell, you should have said something!” Obi-Wan said as he helped Anakin stand back up.

“I did.” Anakin mumbled pinching the bridge of his nose.

“You should have said something earlier, padawan.” Obi-Wan retorted, and then regretted it when he saw Anakin’s shoulders slump.

He sighed. “Come on, why don’t you head back to bed and I’ll wake you up later so you can finish your soup from earlier.” Obi-Wan suggested gently, resting a hand on Anakin’s shoulder again. Anakin looked up at him and nodded, looking more exhausted than Obi-Wan had ever seen him.

* * *

Several hours had passed, and Obi-Wan was contemplating waking Anakin up. But when he stood to go and get him, he heard the familiar thumping of Anakin walking down the hallway.

And he tried not to laugh when Anakin squinted against the brighter light in the kitchen. He had changed out of his robes and was now wearing sleepwear that looked soft and warm. How Anakin wasn’t sweltering underneath it, he had no idea.

“Hungry?” Obi-Wan asked, hoping that he would hear a yes. But Anakin grimaced dropping his arm down to his side and shaking his head.

“Thirsty.” He said, his voice raspy from lack of use.

Several moments later, Anakin sat at their kitchen table, resting his head on it when Obi-Wan placed a glass of water in front of him. He sat up and drank it slowly, setting it back down on the table when it was mostly empty and closing his eyes again.

“I know you must be tired, Anakin.” Obi-Wan began as he took the glass away from him. “But I can’t imagine the kitchen table being a comfortable place to fall asleep.” Relief filled his heart when Anakin smiled softly and laughed. But then his happiness quickly turned to concern when the laughing turned to coughs.

But he had managed to make Anakin smile. And that was progress.

“Back to bed then?” Obi-Wan suggested, Anakin nodded, standing up slower this time than he had earlier. Obi-Wan watched him slowly walk back towards his room, exhaling deeply when he heard the door slide shut. 

It was still early in the evening, the sun still setting over the skyscrapers. And Obi-Wan thought that maybe, he could convince Anakin to eat something in another hour or two.

And maybe talk to him as well.

He hoped he could.


	24. chapter 23

“Remind me to never agree to taking a mission out to the Aporue system ever again.” Obi-Wan said and sighed as he waved the door open to their quarters.

“I’ll refuse to go with you again if you do.” Anakin said and shivered.

“You’re shaking.” Obi-Wan noted softly, his hand coming up to rest on Anakin’s shoulder.

“So are you.” Anakin replied. “And that planet was the coldest, and wettest planet we’ve been to.”

“And the coldest and wettest I hope we ever go to.” Anakin mumbled. Obi-Wan laughed softly.

“Not a big fan of the cold, are we?” Obi-Wan asked. Anakin rolled his eyes.

“Have I ever been?” Anakin retorted. Obi-Wan smiled softly.

“No, I don’t think you have been.” They stood there for a moment in silence, enjoying each other’s company, until another harsh shudder ran through Anakin.

“Why don’t we change into something warmer, and have an early night in?” Obi-Wan suggested, guiding Anakin further into their quarters.

“I hope this isn’t some excuse to watch a cheesy holovid, Obi-Wan.” Anakin replied.

“I would never.” Obi-Wan replied. “Dear one, you wound me.”

Anakin rolled his eyes again.

And while Obi-Wan had suggested an early night in, Anakin didn’t think he would actually be able to fall asleep. On most nights, his running thoughts kept him awake, torturing him with all of the possibilities that could happened. Or that could have happened, had he been a better Jedi.

When he was a padawan, he would sleep on the floor next to Obi-Wan’s bed when his thoughts became overwhelming, the fear of Obi-Wan leaving him as well so great and so strong that he had to make sure that they would stay together.

But while he was no longer a child, those thoughts stayed with him. But he didn’t want to bother Obi-Wan then, so he slept on the floor instead. And he didn’t want to bother Obi-Wan now as an adult, so he instead would lay there and watch the speeders pass by, counting them until he couldn’t anymore.

But to his surprise, he had actually fallen asleep as soon as he curled up underneath his covers. He had put on the warmest sleepwear that he owned, but even with that and being under the blankets, Anakin still shivered. It wasn’t a new experience- he never had fully gotten used to the cold, and it was the planets that were cold and wet that made it feel as if the cold had seeped into his very bones.

And when he woke the next morning, it was slow. His body felt heavy, and his head seemed to be pounding inside of his skull. Anakin blinked as he took a self-assessment of his body, not surprised to find that he had gotten sick after visiting a planet with such a cold and wet climate. Almost cold enough to snow and freeze but not quite. At least the snow would have been pretty.

Anakin sighed softly and closed his eyes. He knew that he should probably get out of bed. He knew that he probably overslept whatever obligation that he had to attend, and that Obi-Wan was probably not happy with him. He sighed, and lifted the covers up and off of him, before swinging his legs around.

He shivered at the sudden loss of warmth, his head feeling both foggy and heavy as he sat up. A slight wave of dizziness over came him.

That was probably not a good sign.

Anakin sighed and stood slowly, more hunched over than usual. He hadn’t bothered to check the time but judging by the way the light was slipping through the cracks of the blinds of his window, he guessed that it had to be mid-morning, if not later.

But when Anakin walked down the hall and into the kitchen, he expected to see a fully dressed Obi-Wan waiting there with a cup of in one hand for himself and a cup of caf in the other for Anakin. Instead, he saw Obi-Wan, who was also still in his sleep clothes sitting at their small kitchen table, a cup of tea in front of him.

“You look horrible.” Obi-Wan said, his voice raspy as Anakin stood in the entranceway.

“You’re one to talk.” Anakin replied as he sat down across from Obi-Wan.

“I canceled everything on our schedules for the day.” Obi-Wan said after a moment.

“I don’t think that we would be the best company to be in at the moment.” He continued before turning to cough into his elbow.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Anakin replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan cleared his throat.

“At least Ahsoka is not here to catch… whatever this is.” Anakin mumbled, closing his eyes as he rested his cheek in the palm of his prosthetic hand. The cool metal felt nice against his hot skin.

“Tired?” Obi-Wan asked softly. Anakin cracked his eyes open.

“And you’re not?” Anakin replied.

“I am, but I don’t think falling asleep at the kitchen table is the best idea.” Obi-Wan replied and took a sip of the tea. Anakin sighed and stood up from the table, walking over to grab a cup.

“You shouldn’t drink caf while ill, Anakin, it will just make your throat hurt even more.” Obi-Wan said.

“I’m not.” Anakin replied while pouring hot water into his cup, grabbing the tea and sitting back down at the kitchen table and resting his head on it. Obi-Wan reached over and combed a hand through his messy curls.

“You should probably do something about this nest on your head.” Obi-Wan said as his fingers caught on a knot.

“I thought you liked my hair now that it was longer.” Anakin mumbled.

“Long hair does suit you.” Obi-Wan replied.

“And I’m sick- I’m allowed to have messy hair.” Obi-Wan laughed softly.

“Well, even sick people are not allowed to fall asleep at the kitchen table.” Obi-Wan said. Anakin grumbled and lifted his head back up.

“Couch?” Anakin suggested. Obi-Wan nodded and took a sip from his own cup before slowly standing and walking over.

The little energy that he seemed to have while talking to Anakin earlier seemed to vanish as Obi-Wan all but collapsed onto one side of the couch and Anakin on the other, who placed a blanket over both of them.

“Are sick people allowed to fall asleep on the couch?” Anakin asked as his eyes slid shut.

“I hope so.” Obi-Wan replied, his voice cracking.

Having Obi-Wan near by was comforting- there was no nightmares that made him question if Obi-Wan would leave him too. Not only because Anakin could hear Obi-Wan soft snores as he drifted off, but he could feel Obi-Wan’s presence in the force next to his own. Safe, warm, and familiar.

Obi-Wan woke up first, blinking slowly as he realized several things. He was still on the couch, and his legs were now intertwined with Anakin’s. And Anakin, whose face was smushed into the side of the couch, was still fast asleep, his mouth opened slightly. Obi-Wan chucked softly when he noticed what appeared to be a little bit of drool on Anakin’s face. The next thing he realized was that if anything, he felt worse now than he had earlier. His whole body ached, and there was now a faint sense of nausea that he didn’t recall being there earlier. He ran a hand through his hair, wincing at how the sweat on his scalp felt.

But his attention was drawn back to Anakin, who shifted slightly and opened his eyes.

“What time is it?” Anakin whispered as he sat up. Obi-Wan blinked.

“I have no idea.” He replied. “But we should probably eat something.”

Anakin grimaced. “I don’t think that’s the best idea.” Obi-Wan sighed as a shiver ran through his body.

“We can just stay under the blanket?” Anakin suggested. “It’s warm here, and we can eat something later.”

“I suppose so.” Obi-Wan said as he relaxed underneath it again.

“I think we’ve slept over half of the day away though.” He mumbled.

“Does it matter?” Anakin asked. “I thought you said that we wouldn’t be good company.”

“Probably not.” Obi-Wan replied and shrugged.

“And I wouldn’t want to be in anyone else’s company except for yours, Anakin.”

Anakin looked down, his face growing even more flushed than it already was before looking back up at Obi-Wan. Their legs were still tangled together, but it still didn’t feel close enough. Obi-Wan wanted to hold Anakin’s hand, hold his face gently in his hands and tell him how much he meant to him. Watch as Anakin gave him that same smile as he told Obi-Wan yet another bad pun while they were on a mission.

“Do you want to go lay down somewhere more comfortable?” Obi-Wan suggested after a moment. Anakin nodded, and Obi-Wan picked the blanket up off of them and stood up.

“Have our quarters always been this cold?” Anakin rasped as he stood up as well. Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, and grabbed Anakin’s hand, leading him towards his bedroom.

* * *

“Are you sure?” Anakin asked as he climbed into the bed with Obi-Wan, their legs intertwining with each other as Anakin lay next to him.

“Of course.” Obi-Wan said as he gently cupped Anakin’s cheek. It was warm.

“I’m just gonna end up falling asleep again.” Anakin mumbled, and Obi-Wan watched as his eyes seemed to struggle to stay open.

“There’s nothing wrong with that, dear one.” Obi-Wan whispered, his own eyes growing heavy.

“But I wanna spend time with you.” Anakin said, trying to force his eyes to stay open and failing.

“I’m not going anywhere.” Obi-Wan replied softly, his eyes sliding shut.


	25. chapter 24

“Well, Anakin should be returning soon.” Obi-Wan said as he poured himself a cup of tea.

“Probably, but you know how he is.” Ahsoka replied from the couch in their living room.

Obi-Wan sighed. “I’d like to think that the weather outside would deter him from making any detours.” He grabbed the cup and walked over to the living room from the kitchen, standing by the window and watching as the rain poured over the city that surrounded them. The sun had recently set on Coruscant, and the lights from the city’s nightlife were blurred due to the heavy rain. Even inside, he could feel the chill form the cold and damp air. Obi-Wan turned back to look at Ahsoka, who was currently sprawled out on the couch, a datapad in her hands.

“You look quite relaxed for someone who should be focusing on their studies.” Obi-Wan noted and Ahsoka groaned.

“Master, I’ve spent the whole day studying!” She exclaimed. “And I’m just going over my notes now, see?” Ahsoka turned her datapad around and Obi-Wan saw pages of notes on galactic trade history.

“When Master Skywalker was my age, what were his study habits like?” She asked as she dropped the datapad back down onto her lap.

“Anakin was… quite studious when he was your age.” Obi-Wan said as a soft smile formed on his face.

“And I would often find him asleep at his desk, with a book open beneath him.”

Ahsoka snickered. “Really?”

Obi-Wan nodded. “Really.”

“At first,” Obi-Wan explained, “He wasn’t very fond of reading, and it was something he struggled with. But by the time he reached your age, he probably read more books on droids than I could count.”

Ahsoka laughed and rolled her eyes. “That sounds like Master Skywalker.”

There was the sound of a door opening the sound of a wet plop as something hit the floor.

“That also sounds like Master Skywalker.” Ahsoka said, getting up from the couch and turning to look at him.

“How was the mission, Anakin?” Obi-Wan said turning to face him with a smile on his face that he hid behind his cup of tea.

In front of the two of them stood Anakin, who was soaking wet, and shaking slightly. His cloak was on the ground in front of him in a wet pile, and there was a small puddle forming around where he was standing.

“How do you think it went, Obi-Wan?” Anakin asked while rolling his eyes.

“Did you catch the guy?” Ahsoka asked.

Anakin nodded, but didn’t say anything, instead turning to sneeze into his elbow several times.

“That won’t be the only thing you catch if you stay in those wet clothes.” Obi-Wan noted.

“Stop nagging, I’ll be fine.” Anakin replied before bending down and picking up his cloak and walking away.

“He’s sneezing again.” Ahsoka said after a moment.

“How can you- oh, right.” Obi-Wan replied, remembering that she had better hearing than humans did.

“He kinda sounds like a loth-cat.” Ahsoka said while giggling and tilting her head.

“Don’t tell him I said that master.” She added on quickly, and Obi-Wan laughed softly.

“He’s heard me say the same thing a number of times by now.”

“Now that’s better, isn’t it?” Obi-Wan asked as Anakin came back out into the living room, wearing a dry set of clothes. He had left the leather Obi and belt off, and instead was just wearing his normal brown tunic with black pants and socks.

Anakin shrugged, and the jumped back as a blanket hit him in the face.

“Sorry,” Ahsoka said sheepishly as she winced. “I was hoping that you would catch it.”

“Thanks, Snips.” Anakin replied as he rolled his eyes and sat down with the blanket on the couch. Ahsoka shifted her legs slightly so that he could have more room, and Anakin lifted up the blanket, draping it over both of them.

“Well, you two look comfortable.” Obi-Wan noted.

“Yep!” Ahsoka said, popping the ‘p’. Anakin sighed and ran a hand over his face.

“I can’t believe that I spent six hours chasing that guy.” Anakin said. “Six hours!” He shifted his position slightly on the couch, pulling the blanket up higher.

“I never wanna go outside in the rain again.” He mumbled.

“You used to love the rain when you were younger.” Obi-Wan said as he walked back into the kitchen.

“Yeah, but that was before I knew how much I hated being cold. And wet.” Anakin replied.

“So, are you just gonna not go on any more missions to Kamino or something?” Ahsoka asked.

“I’ll stay on the ship, but I won’t go down to the surface.” Anakin said while shrugging.

“You usually do that anyway, Anakin.” Obi-Wan replied from the kitchen.

“Yeah, because every time I go down to the surface, something goes wrong.” He said, his voice sounding more strained as he continued talking.

“Here, scoot over.” Obi-Wan said as he walked back into the living room, hold a cup of tea in each hand. He handed one to Ahsoka and one to Anakin as they both shifted their positions so Obi-Wan could join them as well.

They sat in relative silence, that was only interrupted as Ahsoka asked questions from her datapad.

“What are we gonna eat for dinner?” Ahsoka asked as she scrolled through another set of questions on her datapad. Obi-Wan and Anakin looked at each other before looking back at her.

“Whatever you want, I guess.” Anakin replied while shrugging.

“So…” Ahsoka trailed off as a mischievous grin appeared on her face.

“Don’t even think about eating all of that junk food again for dinner, young one.” Obi-Wan nagged.

“Anything _reasonable_.” Anakin clarified. Ahsoka huffed.

“Fine. What are you gonna have then, Skyguy?” She asked. Anakin shrugged.

“I’m not hungry.” He replied.

“You just came back from a six-hour long mission, that included several high-speed chases.” Obi-Wan pointed out.

“Which means that I’m tired, not hungry.” Anakin replied as he leaned his weight onto Obi-Wan slightly.

“You better not fall asleep on me, Anakin.” Obi-Wan warned.

“Now I gotta make sure that I fall asleep as quickly as possible.” Anakin mumbled, feeling his eyes already start to shut on him.

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan sighed and rolled his eyes.

* * *

The next day, Obi-Wan woke up and noticed several things. First, was that Anakin had not come and joined him throughout the night. Usually, Obi-Wan would fall asleep first, while Anakin messed around with a project that he had gotten too invested in but would join him later in the night. And usually, Obi-Wan would wake up and see Anakin next to him, his curls catching the light of the early morning sun on Coruscant.

But today, the other side of the bed was empty, and Obi-Wan tried not to let it bother him too much. He sat up and got dressed, before walking out of his room and over into Anakin’s.

The door slid open, and Obi-Wan stuck his head inside. He could see that Anakin was asleep in his own bed, the covers pulled up so high that all he really could see was the top of Anakin’s head. It was still early, and Obi-Wan figured that he had probably stayed up again working or reading something. And judging by the face that his datapad was on the table next to his bed, Anakin had probably stayed up reading instead of sleeping.

Obi-Wan sighed softly and smiled. It was both a frustrating and endearing quality.

He stepped further into the room and sat down on the edge of the bed. Anakin stirred slightly and opened his eyes.

“Good morning,” Obi-Wan whispered. Anakin groaned softly.

“’S too early.”

“We go through this almost every morning, Anakin.” Obi-Wan responded fondly.

“Because you wake up way too early.”

“On the contrary, I think it is you that stays up too late.” Obi-Wan said.

“And I expect that Ahsoka will be getting up soon as well, so-“

“Alright, alright.” Anakin replied as he sat up and sniffled, closing his eyes before opening them again.

“Well, then I shall leave you to get ready on your own.” Obi-Wan said as he stood back up and walked out of the room. He walked into their kitchen and grabbed himself a cup of tea before sitting down at their small kitchen table and scrolling through headlines on his datapad.

“Bless you!” He called out as he heard Anakin sneeze several times. He looked up from his datapad and watched as Anakin walked over to the counter, grabbed a mug, and had it filled with coffee and sugar, before sliding into the seat across from him, resting his cheek in the palm of his hand.

“Feeling a little under the weather?” Obi-Wan asked.

“Don’t start.” Anakin replied and sighed.

“I won’t.” Obi-Wan replied.

“Morning, masters.” Ahsoka said as she walked into the room.

“What are we doing today, Skyguy?” She asked as she stood in the doorway, pulling her gloves on.

Anakin shrugged. “I have to teach a class of younglings this afternoon, so why don’t we go practice your saber technique once you’re ready to go.” He suggested.

“And what about you, Master Kenobi?” Ahsoka said, turning her attention to him. “Spending the day in more meetings?”

“Unfortunately.” Obi-Wan muttered as he got up to pour himself a cup of tea.

“What’s this?” Anakin asked, perking up. “The great Jedi Master, Obi-Wan Kenobi, doesn’t want to-“

“Shut up, Anakin.” Obi-Wan interrupted as he sat back down. Anakin smiled to himself before taking a sip from his cup.

“Well, I’m hungry, so after I eat, let’s go!” Ahsoka said as she walked across the kitchen and grabbed a ration bar.

“I thought you didn’t like those.” Anakin said as he watched her. She shrugged.

“I don’t, but I wanna spend as much time practicing my grip with my second saber before you have to leave.” Ahsoka responded with a mouthful of food.

“Ahsoka, you know that we’ve both told you not to talk with your mouth full.” Obi-Wan said.

“Sorry.” She mumbled, her mouth still full of food. Anakin rolled his eyes.

“Come on, Snips.” Anakin said as he stood up. “Let’s go before Obi-Wan finds even more things to nag us about.”

“Anakin, I am not nagging!” Obi-Wan responded. Ahsoka grinned and followed Anakin, who had walked out of the kitchen and was heading towards the door.

“Bye Master Kenobi!” She said as she walked out behind him.

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes.

Anakin knew that teaching the younglings was a bad idea. Not that he didn’t like teaching, but by the end of the basic saber session, his head was pounding, and he didn’t want to do anything else except for go and lay down somewhere that was quiet. He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

Maybe Obi-Wan was right. He didn’t want to admit it though.

Anakin picked up his cloak from where he left it on the ground and put it back on as a chill ran through his body. He walked towards a nearby lift and sighed again once the doors closed behind him. But before he knew it, he was on the floor that his quarters were on and wincing as the change in pressure caused his headache to worsen.

Thankfully, their apartment was empty when he stepped inside. Not that he didn’t want to spend time with Ahsoka or Obi-Wan, but he wanted to spend the next few hours by himself. He quickly made his way through the living room and down the hall to his own quarters, shrugging his cloak off and throwing it onto the chair by his desk before flopping down onto his bed. Anakin curled up and closed his eyes, promising himself that he wouldn’t stay for too long.

* * *

And suddenly a hand was gently shaking his shoulder. Anakin squeezed his eyes shut, realizing that he felt much worse now than he did earlier.

“Did the younglings tire you out?” Obi-Wan asked gently. Anakin sat up slowly and nodded. He heard Obi-Wan laugh and he opened his eyes.

“What’s so funny?” He asked as he sniffled.

“Your hair is a mess, and your nose is all red, and you’re trying to tell me that you’re perfectly healthy?” Obi-Wan asked.

“I’m fine.” Anakin said leaning into the touch of Obi-Wan running his hands through his hair.

“You don’t sound fine.” Obi-Wan replied. “Do you have anything else that you have to do today?”

Anakin shook his head. “No, but don’t you have other things to do?” He asked and then cleared his throat.

“Anakin, do you know what time it is?” Obi-Wan asked.

“No?”

“It’s the evening. The day is over, and Ahsoka wants to go get diner food for dinner.” Obi-Wan replied.

“The day is over?” Anakin asked, blinking several times. Obi-Wan laughed.

“Yes, it’s over. Ahsoka and I can go on our own if you don’t want to come.” Obi-Wan suggested. Anakin hesitated for a moment, looking away before looking back up at him.

“Actually, it probably would be better if you didn’t, considering that you look like you could fall back asleep at any moment.” Obi-Wan said and to his surprise, Anakin agreed.

“You’re probably right.” Anakin said as he rubbed his eyes.

“What’s this? You’re agreeing with me? I better check to make sure you’re not-“ Obi-Wan said as he leaned over and began to fuss over Anakin.

“Let me suffer in silence, old man.” Anakin replied, trying to shrug Obi-Wan off of him, but relaxed once he was in his embrace.

“You do feel warmer than usual.” Obi-Wan noted. But before Anakin could say anything in response, he quickly pushed himself away from Obi-Wan and sneezed several times, a chill running up his spine after he finished.

“Anakin,” Obi-Wan sighed.

“I know, I know. Get lots of rest, drink lots of fluids, don’t stay up until the dead of night.” Anakin replied as he rubbed his eyes again.

“Well, since you seem to have everything under control, Ahsoka and I will return in about an hour or so.” Obi-Wan replied as he stood back up, pressing a gentle kiss to Anakin’s forehead.

“Have fun.” Anakin said as he laid back down on the bed, watching Obi-Wan walk away.

And true to his word, Obi-Wan and Ahsoka was back an hour later, and Ahsoka was opening Anakin’s door and tossing him a box of tissues, which hit him in the face.

“Hey!” Anakin exclaimed, his voice cracking. He turned to the side to cough a few times before turning back around and picking up the box.

“You sounded like you could use these, so I got you some on the way back!” Ahsoka explained. “I heard you sneeze at least five times since we got back.”

“You didn’t have to throw them at me.” Anakin mumbled as he set them on the nightstand.

“I thought Master Kenobi said you should be resting?” She asked him.

“I am.” Anakin replied as he gestured at himself. Since they left, he had changed into his sleepwear, and was now under the covers of his bed, holding his datapad.

“I think he meant sleeping, Skyguy.” Ahsoka said.

“I did, but this is better than nothing.” Obi-Wan said as he walked into the room. “Although it’s not like you can do much of anything if you can’t go more than a few minutes without coughing or sneezing.”

Anakin glared at him, and then turned away to sneeze.

“Doesn’t that make your face hurt?” Ahsoka asked as she scrunched up her nose.

“A little.” Anakin replied, reaching over for the box of tissues.

“Well, I’m sure it’s nothing a few days of resting can’t fix.” Obi-Wan said while shrugging.

“Sounds like a blast, have fun Master.” Ahsoka said as she walked away, and Obi-Wan walked further into the room, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

“Is this why you didn’t come and spend the night with me last night?” He asked Anakin after a moment.

Anakin shrugged. “I didn’t want you to fuss.”

“I was going to fuss anyway, Anakin.” Obi-Wan said, kissing him on the forehead. Anakin smiled.

“I know.” He replied as he felt a rush of affection through their bond.


	26. chapter 25

After Padme had left him, he was alone again on the ship. Anakin knew that despite her disguise, that he was just speaking to the same person that he had met in the shop. He had curled his fist tighter around the japor snippet in his hand, tempted to give it to her but also wanting to save it for the right person, and the right moment.

The ship was cold, and Anakin crossed his arms tightly around himself, trying to stop himself from shivering. From the way that the lights were dimming on the ship, it looked as if it were beginning to enter its night cycle. When they had first gotten on board, one of the handmaidens explained to him that since Naboo had a 26-hour long day, that’s what the ship followed as well. But Tatooine had a 34-hour long day. On Tatooine, the most active hours of the day were around dawn and dusk, with people sleeping through the harsh midday sun, and the cold midnight wind.

He had never been able to spend ten hours in one night cycle. Ten hours to just sleep and be on his own.

But this was a strange place, a cold place, and Anakin didn’t want to be alone. He looked around, remembering his way through the ship as he walked through the small halls, back towards where the others were.

In the common room he saw Obi-Wan, who Qui-Gon had introduced to him earlier. His shoulders were slumped, and he was looking at a map of something, blinking slowly.

“Um, hello?” Anakin called from the other side of the room. Obi-Wan blinked and quickly straightened up.

“Anakin?” He asked as he looked over towards where he was. “Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing’s wrong.” Anakin replied, feeling his face heat up with embarrassment.

“Are you sure about that, young one?” Obi-Wan asked as he stood up from where he was sitting and walked over toward him. Anakin shifted slightly, taking a step back unconsciously. Obi-Wan stopped and stared at him, realizing how frightening this must all be for him.

“Would you like to sit with me?” He asked after a moment. Anakin hesitated, and then nodded, silently following Obi-Wan back to where he was and then sitting next to him.

He was warm, and Anakin wanted to lean in further, but he didn’t want to bother Obi-Wan. So, he sat still, watching as Obi-Wan continued to look over the map that he had been looking at before.

After a moment he sighed and stretched.

“Well, I’m pretty tired, aren’t you?” He asked, looking down at Anakin who nodded and rubbed his eyes with balled up fists.

“Yeah.” He mumbled, and Obi-Wan chucked. He stood up from the seat he was in, guiding Anakin to do the same with a hand on his shoulder.

“Come on, then.” Obi-Wan said, guiding Anakin out of the room.

Later, as Qui-Gon was doing a late night round on the ship, he stopped and checked the quarters that Obi-Wan was in. And a huge smiled formed on his face as he spotted both him and Anakin underneath a blanket, fast asleep.

And if he took a few holos, Obi-Wan would probably never know.

Probably.

* * *

“You gotta relax, Obi-Wan.” Anakin said as he rolled his eyes.

“The HoloNet comes up with some new scandal every week, I’m sure it’s just our turn.”

Obi-Wan sighed and looked at him. “Anakin,”

“Does the council seem concerned?” Anakin asked, tilting his head to the side.

“No, they don’t. They figure that it is probably for attention, and that we should let it pass.” Obi-Wan replied as he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Then, why are you so tense? Is something else wrong?” Anakin asked.

Obi-Wan shook his head.

“Do you even know what it’s about?” Anakin asked. Obi-Wan shook his head again.

“Do you?” He asked Anakin. Anakin looked away, shifting his weight on his feet slightly.

“You do!” Obi-Wan exclaimed.

“It’s not a big deal!” Anakin replied.

“Then tell me!”

“No!” Anakin said taking a step back.

“Why have your hands been behind your back this entire time, Anakin?” Obi-Wan asked, taking another step forward, their faces almost touching.

“Um, no reason.” Anakin replied, refusing to meet Obi-Wan’s eyes.

But in one quick motion Obi-Wan quickly grabbed what he was holding and held it up to see for himself.

“This… is what the scandal is about?” Obi-Wan asked softly. “This photo?”

Anakin bit his lip and nodded. “It’s not exactly a scandal…” He trailed off.

“Does the headline have something to do with a rare show of affection from the Jedi?” Obi-Wan deadpanned.

Anakin nodded, and Obi-Wan rolled his eyes.

“Well, it doesn’t have to be rare.” Obi-Wan said with a shrug, causing Anakin to immediately become flustered.

Later that night, instead of going to his own room, Anakin walked into Obi-Wan’s. He wanted to talk to him about what had happened earlier that day, but when he saw that Obi-Wan was already under the covers, he hesitated.

And then Obi-Wan lifted up the covers, a silent invitation for Anakin to join him. Anakin slid into the bed, and pressed himself up against Obi-Wan’s side. Obi-Wan shifted slightly, and they each wrapped an arm around each other.

It was the first time that Anakin could remember not having a nightmare since the war began.


	27. chapter 26

"But politics are boring master!" Anakin exclaimed as he pouted at Obi-Wan.

"It only seems boring because you have yet to acquire the patience to sit down and understand it, Anakin," Obi-Wan replied and Anakin huffed.

"Not true!" Anakin exclaimed and Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow.

"Well then, come sit next to me and prove it, young one," Obi-Wan said as he sat down on the couch in their common room with a datapad in his hands.

As expected, Anakin rose to the challenge, sitting down next to Obi-Wan, looking at him with a determined expression.

"Now, this first article that I will be reading is about the history of the republic when the Jedi order first became a part of it," Obi-Wan explained as Anakin shifted slightly next to him.

"Okay..." Anakin replied, narrowing his eyes at the datapad.

"Are you sure you want to sit around and hear about this?" Obi-Wan asked, wondering if Anakin would take the bait.

He didn't.

"I can do it!" Anakin exclaimed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Of course you can, my apologies." Obi-Wan said and nodded, before opening up the article again and began to read.

Eventually, he noticed that Anakin's weight had shifted again, so that his head was pressed against his side. But he kept reading, his voice soft and calming, warm beams of sunlight shining through the windows.

Speeders passed by outside, and plants hung in the window, soaking up the sun as Obi-Wan's soft voice echoed around the small common room. And once he was finished, he smiled softly to himself, realizing that Anakin had fallen asleep, his breathing soft and even as his face was pressed into Obi-Wan's side.

So much for politics.


End file.
